By CHILA NAMAIKO –
THE European Union (EU) has given Zambia a grant of US$52 million to help strengthen the provision of Comprehensive Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care in Maternal Health.
The new programme is aimed at accelerating the reduction of maternal and neonatal mortality.
The country’s maternal mortality ratio stands at about 398 deaths per 100,000 live births.

. KASONDE

Health Minister Joseph Kasonde told Parliament on Tuesday that the grant was helping the Government to provide more care to women and newborn babies experiencing complications occurring during pregnancy, labour and immediately after childbirth.
“We are committed to seeing a reduction in maternal and neonatal mortality, and we are working on new strategies by also employing more health workers to be deployed in various health centres,” he said.
The Government has started conducting the emergency obstetric and newborn care training in nursing schools in selected provinces and the training has become part of the nursing curriculum.
Dr Kasonde said the grant, which would be used for a period of more than two years, was key in accelerating the reduction of maternal and neonatal mortality.
He was speaking when winding up debate on the report of the committee on Health, Community Development and Social Services on the report of the Auditor General on the provision of comprehensive emergency obstetric and newborn care in maternal health.
In his report, committee chairperson Likando Mufalali urged the Government to ensure hospitals complied with the directive to stop rotating the few health workers that had been trained in emergency obstetric and newborn care, where possible, to ensure skills utilisation.
Mr Mufalali, who is United Party for National Development (UPND) Member of Parliament for Senanga, urged the Government to put up more infrastructure in rural areas for the provision of emergency obstetric and newborn care services.