The maternal mortality ratio is unacceptably high in Africa. Forty per cent of all pregnancy-related deaths worldwide occur in Africa. On average, over 7 women die per 1,000 live births. About 22,000 African women die each year from unsafe abortion, reflecting a high unmet need for contraception. Contraceptive use among women in union varies from 50 per cent in the southern sub-region to less than 10 per cent in middle and western Africa" UNFPA
Early and unwanted childbearing, HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and pregnancy-related illnesses and deaths account for a significant proportion of the burden of illness experienced by women in Africa. Gender-based violence is an influential factor negatively impacting on the sexual and reproductive health of one in every three women. Many are unable to control decisions to have sex or to negotiate safer sexual practices, placing them at great risk of disease and health complications.
According to UNAIDS, there is an estimated of 22.2 million people living with HIV in Sub-Saharan African in 2009, which represents 68% of the global HIV burden. Women are at higher risk than men to be infected by HIV, their vulnerability remains particulary high in the Sub-Saharan Africa and 76% of all HIV women in the world live in this region.
In almost all countries in the Sub-Saharan Africa region, the majority of people living with HIV are women, especially girls and women aged between 15-24. Not only are women more likely to become infected, they are more severely affected. Their income is likely to fall if an adult man loses his job and dies. Since formal support to women are very limited, they may have to give up some income-genrating activities or sacrifice school to take care of the sick relatives.
For more information on HIV/AIDS and Reproductive health, please visit the following websites:
Source: DailyMonitor
Health and education experts have warned of an increasing number of teenage pregnancies, stigma and mental health problems among school going learners due to ongoing coronavirus induced lockdown.
Source: World Helath Organization
A clearer picture of the global impact
New research from the Global Maternal Sepsis Study (GLOSS), a major WHO/HRP initiative, shows that infection has a much larger impact on global maternal mortality and morbidity than previously thought.
In the visitors’ books of Eshowe’s many guesthouses and hotels, tourists inspired by verdant sugar cane fields and blossoming trees write about “a corner of Eden”.
Locals and specialists know the small town set high among the rolling hills that run along South Africa’s eastern coast for another reason.
In Kenya, Always pads use a cheap material that causes irrituation for many. In Europe and the US, they don't.
For more than three decades, Procter & Gamble had a near monopoly in Kenya’s sanitary pad market. Its “Always” pads are most likely the first brand girls become familiar with, long before they even know what menstruation is. Over time, the name has also become synonymous with superior quality. Consumers feel they have no reason to try other brands.
Source: The Guardian
Charity warns loss of services caused by lockdowns could result in millions of unwanted pregnancies and unsafe abortions.
Almost half of women and girls living in more than 50 countries around the world are not able to make their own decisions about their reproductive rights, with up to a quarter saying they are unable to say no to sex, a new survey has found.
Source: All Africa
PRESIDENT John Magufuli on Monday reiterated his position on birth control, saying a large population is beneficial to the economy.
Source: Daily Observer
A non-governmental organization (NGO), Dignity Liberia, has begun a three-day livelihood training program for selected women and school girls in tailoring with a specific concentration in the production of reusable sanitary pads or menstrual cups.
Dignity Liberia Targets 250 Women, School Girls on Production of ‘Reusable Pads’
Source: News 24
The Commission for Gender Equality (CGE) has found that the practice of forced or coerced sterilisation for women living with HIV in South Africa's public hospitals was "cruel, torturous or inhuman and degrading treatment".
Source: Thomson Reuters Foundation
Sirreh Samateh has worked outdoors through all eight of her pregnancies, labouring in the sun to grow rice and vegetables in her Gambian village of Jali.