Source: Times of Zambia
ROTARY Club International (RCI) has pledged to work closely with the Zambian Government in reducing maternal and child mortality rate in the country.
RCI president Sakuji Tanaka said Rotary Club International had put in place a firm strategy to reduce maternal and child mortality in developing countries.
Mr Tanaka said this through his personal assistant Tadesse Alemu who officiated at the graduation ceremony for Safe Motherhood Action Groups in Ndola yesterday.
Forty women from various communities within Ndola underwent a 10-day training programme to equip traditional birth attendants with skills and safe delivery methods.
"Women, especially those in rural areas, die because there is lack of skilled personnel to attend to them as they give birth. Therefore, it is important that people who are equipped with skills play their part to save these lives," he said.
Ndola District Community Development, Mother and Child Health officer Nyambe Mwanasake said training the 40 women would go a long way in reducing the maternal and child mortality rate in the country.
"4,000 women and girls die per year while 80,000 suffer from pregnancy-related disabilities each year," she said.
Copperbelt Minister Mwenya Musenge said the Government would always provide a conducive environment for organisations such as RCI to contribute to national development.
Meanwhile, more than 350 delegates from across the region have converged for a four-day 2013 Rotary District 9210 conference at Levy Mwanawasa Stadium in Ndola.
The delegates have been drawn from the Rotary District 9210 member countries that include Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi and Mozambique.
Rotary District 9210 International Conference spokesperson Victor Chimuka said the delegates had started arriving in Ndola in readiness for the official opening today.
Zambia's District 9210 Governor Nimrod Kapwele said the hosting of the event in Ndola was a good development as the delegates would also have an opportunity to view the tourist attractions in the city.