Mothers' Day 2011
MAY 2011 - Mothers all over the world are honoured and celebrated every year throughout the months of March, April and May for all that they do to ensure the health and well-being of their children.
The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health supports our members in all their efforts to help mothers survive and thrive, 365 days a year. Below, find highlights of some of the ways PMNCH members have been marking Mother’s Day this year. We welcome all contributions on the PMNCH Website contribution form.
Save the Children releases annual report on the state of the world’s mothers
Save the Children’s 12th annual “State of the World's Mothers” report, released 3 May 2011, compares the best and worst places to be a mother, makes the case for continued American investment in maternal and child health programs in the face of a tight budget and sheds light on the dire cost of missing birth attendants.
UK aid launches online multimedia package to spotlight work in Nigeria
On 3 April 2011, UK’s Department for International Development launched a special online multimedia package to highlight UK aid’s work helping women in Nigeria spot the warning signs of dangerous pregnancies. In Nigeria, where Mother's Day was also celebrated on 3 April this year, the likelihood of a woman dying of pregnancy and childbirth-related causes is one in 23, compared with one in 4,700 in the UK. And while 2% of the world's population lives in Nigeria, it is home to more than 10% of maternal deaths.
- Visit the PMNCH Calendar for more details about UK aid’s online multimedia package
- Check out DFID’s multimedia package highlighting UK aid’s work in Nigeria
MAMA: New mobile health partnership launched to save lives at birth
In collaboration with Johnson & Johnson, the mHealth Alliance and the BabyCenter, PMNCH partners USAID and the United Nations Foundation have launched the Mobile Alliance for Maternal Action (MAMA), a public-private partnership that will harness the power of mobile technology to deliver vital health information to new and expectant mothers in developing countries.
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USAID: MAMA - New mobile health partnership launched to save lives at birth
Read more about MAMA and its launch event in Washington.
Marching for midwives
This year the International Confederation of Midwives (ICM) is asking member associations, midwives and their supporters around the world to take to the streets on the International Day of the Midwife on 5 May 2011. National associations and local services are invited to organise a 5km walk in their local communities to build commitment to tackling global inequalities in maternal and newborn mortality and to highlight local issues in midwifery service provision. Visit the PMNCH Events Calendar for more details about International Day of the Midwife and the March for Midwives campaign. (Hyperlink to calendar event: http://apps.who.int/calendar/?q=node/231
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International Day of the Midwife 2011
More info on International Day of the Midwife
“No Woman, No Cry” premiere on OWN and the “Count Me In” campaign
In her gripping directorial debut, maternal health champion Christy Turlington Burns shares the powerful stories of at-risk pregnant women in four parts of the world, including a remote Maasai tribe in Tanzania, a slum of Bangladesh, a post-abortion care ward in Guatemala, and a prenatal clinic in the United States. "No Woman, No Cry" will debut on Oprah’s new network on 7 May 2011, just in time for Mother’s Day in North America. A number of PMNCH partners have been promoting this film in advance of its air date and helping Mrs Turlington Burns garner support for her Every Mother Counts initiative. Women Deliver, The White Ribbon Alliance, CARE, Save the Children and others have also partnered with Every Mother Counts for a special “Count Me In” Mother’s Day campaign. Visit the PMNCH Events Calendar for more details about the “No Woman, No Cry” television premiere and to learn more about the Every Mother Counts initiative.
Youth Front Pakistan promotes healthy pregnancies and the importance of mothers
Youth Front Pakistan promotes healthy pregnancies and the importance of mothers PMNCH member organization Youth Front Pakistan held a special health session at a girls middle school during "Mother and Child Week" in April to teach the young women that “pregnancy is not a disease” and can be a healthy and happy experience when mothers have the right tools. In May, the organization teamed up with the Society for Sustainable Development to celebrate Mother's Day with another educational session about the important role mothers play in society.
The Guardian: Voices from Africa — an interactive feature
To mark International Day of the Midwife, The Guardian asked midwives working with PMNCH partner The White Ribbon Alliance across Africa about the chances of their country hitting the targets of the fifth millennium development goal - to improve maternal health —and what governments need to do to address the issue.
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation invited WHO to address the readers of their foundation blog
Many of the adversities women face are out of their direct control. Hence, societies are responsible to women and mothers for creating the conditions that make pregnancies, abortions and childbirth safe. As WHO is chairing the process to determine the most effective ways for tracking the effective implementation of the Global Strategy for Women's and Children's Health, we chose to focus the blog contribution on accountability.