Afghanistan celebrates National Safe Motherhood Day and launches communication campaign
08 October 2006
 The first national Safe Motherhood Day in Afghanistan, "Pregnancy and Childbirth is
Special, Let's Make it Safe," was celebrated on 8 October 2006. The day's themes included the importance
of having a skilled attendant at birth and knowing the danger signs associated with pregnancy and childbirth.
Under the leadership of the Reproductive Health Department of the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH),
with coordination provided by the Afghan Midwives Association, a variety of programs were organized
across the country to celebrate the day and reinforce the commitment to safer pregnancy and
childbirth. Technical and financial support for the programs was provided by
various donors, international and domestic nongovernmental organizations, and other stakeholders.
Afghanistan's maternal mortality ratio is estimated to be the second highest in the
world at 1,600 deaths/100,000 live births. Effective multi-layered interventions and multi-sectoral
collaboration are needed to improve these somber statistics. The MoPH has taken just such an approach
by organizing the Safe Motherhood Day, which launched a national Safe Motherhood campaign.
A public forum in Kabul on 8 October marked the beginning of the national campaign.
Similar programs were held across eight provinces (Badakshan, Kandahar, Jawzjan, Herat, Nangarhar,
Kabul, Takhar and Bamiyan) between 8 and 15 October. These programs, which were publicized through
radio and television announcements, initiated discussion about maternal and neonatal mortality and
local solutions.
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Dr. Sayed Mohammed Amin Fatimi, Afghanistan's Minister of Public Health,
speaks at Safe Motherhood event in Kabul
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Dr. Nadera Hayat Burhani, Afghanistan's Deputy Minister of Reproductive Health,
addresses audience
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The MoPH's national Safe Motherhood campaign includes radio and television spots being
aired on Afghanistan's National Radio and Television and on Ariana, a private radio and television channel.
Print materials, including posters and fliers, are also being circulated nationally. Street theater
programs are being planned for two provinces in the near future.
The communication campaign focuses
on increasing the knowledge of husbands and mothers-in-law—the family’s main decision-makers—about
the danger signs of pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum periods, preparedness for emergencies,
and the importance of skilled birth attendants at delivery. Additional topics such as antenatal care,
neonatal care, neonatal danger signs and exclusive breastfeeding will be incorporated into the
campaign in 2007.
This national campaign is being technically guided by the Service Support Project
(SSP) and funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)/Afghanistan.
UNICEF is supporting the current effort through 31 December 2006. The SSP will continue technical
support to the MoPH beyond this date, and funds will be generated from other sources to continue
the national campaign.
The advocacy discussions around Safe Motherhood were initiated by the Afghan
Midwives Association in July 2006, and the current advocacy programs are a result of the action
plans developed jointly by the stakeholders in a workshop hosted by the Association. In 2005,
USAID's ACCESS Program helped to establish the Afghan Midwives Association, which now has more
than 700 members. The SSP, under ACCESS, continues to support the Association.
About ACCESS
The ACCESS Program is the U.S. Agency for International Development’s
global program to improve maternal and newborn health. The ACCESS Program works to expand
coverage, access and use of key maternal and newborn health services across a continuum
of care from the household to the hospital—with the aim of making quality health services
accessible for women and newborns.
Jhpiego implements the program in partnership with Save the
Children, Constella Futures, the Academy for Educational Development, the American
College of Nurse-Midwives and IMA World Health.
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