Gender Minister, midwives unite to tackle maternal deaths

The Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, Dr Agnes Naa Momo Lartey, has engaged the Greater Accra Chapter of the National Association of Registered Midwives-Ghana on measures to strengthen efforts to end preventable maternal deaths in the country. The engagement, led by the Chairperson of the Association, Rosetta N. Boakye, focused on challenges contributing to maternal mortality and the need for stronger collaboration among relevant institutions to improve maternal and newborn health outcomes. The Association presented the Minister with a policy position paper titled “Ending Preventable Maternal Deaths in Ghana: A Policy Position on Accelerating Ghana’s Progress Towards SDG 3.1.” The document identified several critical gaps requiring urgent attention, including the quality of care, staffing and professional capacity, referral systems, and access to timely interventions for obstetric complications. According to the Association, although Ghana has made progress in reducing maternal mortality, the pace of progress remains insufficient to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal target of fewer than 70 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births by 2030. It therefore called for renewed and coordinated action to tackle preventable causes of maternal deaths and improve access to quality maternal healthcare. Dr Lartey welcomed the concerns raised by the midwives and stressed the importance of institutional collaboration in addressing challenges confronting vulnerable women, particularly pregnant and lactating mothers who require social and economic support. She highlighted existing social protection interventions, including the Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) programme, which provides support to vulnerable households. The Minister also emphasised the need for stronger linkages between social protection and health sector interventions to ensure that vulnerable women receive the support needed to access essential maternal and newborn health services. Dr Lartey assured the delegation of the Ministry’s commitment to working with relevant institutions and stakeholders to strengthen interventions aimed at protecting women and promoting safe motherhood.Source: Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection
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