IT PAYS OFF TO INVEST IN WOMEN’S HEALTH

By Thoraya Ahmed Obaid and - - Reprint | | Print |

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NEW YORK, Jun 17 2008 (IPS) - (By Thoraya Ahmed Obaid anf Theresa Shaver) Every minute of every day a woman dies in childbirth. Not from a disease that couldn’t be cured. Or from complications that couldn’t be treated. Almost always she dies because she didn’t receive the most basic life-saving care, write Thoraya Ahmed Obaid, Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and Theresa Shaver, Director of The White Ribbon Alliance fro Safe Motherhood. While the advances of medical care ­antibiotics, better obstetric procedures and control of infections­ sent maternal death ratios plummeting in the 20th century in rich countries, complications in pregnancy and childbirth remain the leading killer of women in Africa and South Asia. This is despite numerous pledges by world leaders spanning two decades, and a commitment to work together to meet the United Nations Millennium Development Goal 5 to improve maternal health, get universal access to reproductive health and reduce maternal death by 75 per cent by 2015. At current rates of change, this goal will not be met until 2076 at the earliest in Asia… and many years later in Africa. The tragedy of a mother lost, while shattering to every family, is not suffered equally by the rich and poor. Even though 15 per cent of pregnant women worldwide experience life-threatening complications, a woman’s lifetime risk of dying from such complications is 1 in 26 in Africa, compared to 1 in 7300 in developed countries.

This is the story of 13-year old Husan Pari from Pakistan, told by her mother Saeeda Bibi. Unfortunately, it is not an uncommon story.

Every minute of every day a woman dies in childbirth. Not from a disease that couldn’t be cured. Or from complications that couldn’t be treated. Almost always she dies because she didn’t receive the most basic life-saving care.

While the advances of medical care ­antibiotics, better obstetric procedures and control of infections­ sent maternal death ratios plummeting in the 20th century in rich countries, complications in pregnancy and childbirth remain the leading killer of women in Africa and South Asia. This is despite numerous pledges by world leaders spanning two decades, and a commitment to work together to meet the United Nations Millennium Development Goal 5 to improve maternal health, get universal access to reproductive health and reduce maternal death by 75 per cent by 2015. At current rates of change, this goal will not be met until 2076 at the earliest in Asia… and many years later in Africa.

The tragedy of a mother lost, while shattering to every family, is not suffered equally by the rich and poor. Even though 15 per cent of pregnant women worldwide experience life-threatening complications, a woman’s lifetime risk of dying from such complications is 1 in 26 in Africa, compared to 1 in 7300 in developed countries.

Whether in Bangladesh or in Belgium, pregnant women need to receive quality, compassionate, culturally sensitive care before, during and after childbirth. The good news is that we know how to save women’s lives. When women have access to reproductive health services­family planning, skilled birth attendants, emergency obstetric care and post-natal care, they almost always survive. In Malaysia, after introducing midwives at the community level, maternal deaths dropped dramatically. In Sri Lanka, maternal mortality was halved in just a decade by extending health services to rural areas, training midwives, introducing family planning and advancing obstetric care.

That half a million women die each year in pregnancy or childbirth is a marker of failing health systems that are unable to provide the most basic primary and emergency health care. Similarly, the almost 8 million newborn stillbirths and deaths each year are largely the result of the same gaps in health care that cause the death and disability of their mothers. Yet, a package of maternal health services costing less than $1.50 per person could make significant improvements in women’s health in the 75 countries where 95 per cent of maternal and child deaths occur. Experts estimate that an additional $6 billion in annual funding could dramatically reduce maternal and newborn deaths in developing countries. This sum is the equivalent of about one and a half days of global military spending.

It takes political will backed by financial resources to bring down the number of mothers dying needlessly during childbirth, and we applaud the five nations ­ Denmark, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden ­ that have met the target of giving 0.7 per cent of gross national income for development aid. We ask the rest to do the same and urgently call upon the Group of Eight (G-8) and other world leaders to invest in maternal health services so that all pregnant women have access to lifesaving care.

Making the health and rights of women a global priority is not only the right thing to do, it is smart economics. When women are educated and healthy and can participate fully in society, the social and economic benefits extend to their families, communities, and nations. It pays off to invest in women. (END/COPYRIGHT IPS)