As the African Union Summit open in Uganda to focus on improving maternal mortality, the government of Uganda has been called upon to put more investment in health care and health infrastructure to reduce on the number of women dying during or after giving birth.
Mother and baby. Many women in Uganda do not deliver safely
According to the Uganda Women’s Network, about 6,000 women and girls in Uganda die every year due to pregnancy related causes despite the various interventions that the government has put in place to reduce on the address the issue of maternal health in Uganda.
In a policy brief ahead of the AU meeting taking place at the Commonwealth Resort in Munyonyo, UWONET also called upon other African countries to also give more attention to solving maternal mortality.
The NGO says over 500, 000 women and girls die due to complications related to pregnancy and child birth and the biggest percentage of these women and girls are from developing countries in Africa.
The brief also says that about 20- 30 other women in Uganda suffer from short and long term disabilities every year such as Vesico- vaginal Fistula as a result of pregnancy related causes.
One of the key commitments of the Millennium Development Goals is Goal number 5 obliges countries to reduce maternal mortality by 3/4 by 2015.
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