Archive for category: Global Poverty

Key articles and information on global poverty.

10 Facts About the Darfur Genocide

Darfur Genocide
The Darfur Genocide is one of the worst human rights abuses of modern time. Over 90 diverse tribes and sub-clans populate the region of Darfur which is located in western Sudan. With a pre-conflict population of 6 million people, tensions within the region leading to the Darfur Genocide were produced by multiple interconnected factors including ethnic conflict, economic instability and political opportunism.

The level of violence and destruction at the height of the Darfur genocide was staggering. In 2005, the Coalition for International Justice interviewed 1,136 Darfur refugees located in 19 camps in neighboring Chad. A staggering 61 percent of the respondents noted that they had witnessed the killing of one of their family members.

 

Top 10 Darfur Genocide Facts:

 

  1. In 1989, then-General Omar al-Bashir seized control of Sudan through a military coup. The country was in the middle of a 21-year civil war between the North and South regions when the leader came to power and tensions continued to build. Conflicts began to increase within the ethnically diverse Darfur and weapons started flowing into the area due to a struggle for political control.
  2. The conflict escalated in 2003 when two non-Arab rebel groups within Darfur, the Sudan Liberian Army and the Justice and Equality Movement, accused the government of neglecting the region and took up arms against it. The Sudanese government, led by al-Bashir, quickly responded with a counter-insurgency campaign against the rebels and began backing a brutal Arab militia known as the Janjaweed. Civilians within the country were the ones to ultimately pay the price for the escalating violence and began receiving a barrage of attacks from the government, pro-government troops and rebel groups.
  3. The dispute is generally racial and not religious in nature. Muslim Arab Sudanese (the Janjaweed militia group) systematically targeted, displaced, and murdered Muslim black Sudanese individuals within the Darfur region. The victims are generally from non-Arab tribal groups.
  4. According to the United Human Rights Council, over 400 villages were completely destroyed through the conflict, forcing mass amounts of civilians to be displaced from their homes. The Janjaweed would set out to destroy the houses and buildings within the community, shooting the men and gang-raping the women and children. Families would be separated and killed. Those who escaped the brutal onslaught would then be faced with an arduous journey to find refuge.
  5. Many citizens fled the violence and relocated to refugee camps within the area and neighboring Chad. According to the Thomson Reuters Foundation, approximately two million individuals are still displaced due to the violence, with the majority having left their homes between 2003 and 2005 — the height of the conflict.
  6. Malnutrition, starvation and disease were serious concerns. Residents have been able to receive limited humanitarian assistance during the conflict due to the Sudanese government hindering aid efforts within the region and violence against humanitarian programs already in place. According to UNICEF, attacks on humanitarian vehicles, convoys, and compounds are common, impacting the availability of vital aid services. Approximately 25 to 30 international relief organizations have left the area due to security concerns or have been expelled by the government, as reported by The Washington Post.
  7. In June 2005, the International Criminal Court (ICC) launched investigations into the human rights violations occurring in Darfur. According to the United Human Rights Council, the government refused to cooperate with the investigations and denied any connection with the Janjaweed militia group.
  8. On March 4, 2009, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir became the first-ever sitting president of a country to be indicted by the ICC for directing a campaign of mass killing, and rape against civilians in Darfur. His accusations according to the BBC include crimes of humanity including murder, extermination, rape and torture, as well as war crimes including attacks on civilians in Darfur, and pillaging towns and villages.
  9. The United Nations estimates that as many as 300,000 individuals have been killed since the start of the Darfur conflict in 2003. The majority of these casualties are from civilian men, women and children who lived within communities throughout the area.
  10. While the conflict has eased, it is by no means over. According to the Thomas Reuters Foundation, levels of violence have increased since the start of 2013. Approximately 400,000 individuals were displaced from their homes during the first half of 2014 alone as the Darfur crisis persists.

– Lauren Lewis

Sources: BBC, United Human Rights Council, Thomson Reuters Foundation, Darfur Australia Network, UNICEF, The Washington Post, Sudan Research, Analysis, Advocacy
Photo: Haiku Deck

,

UN: New Efforts to Reduce Climate Change and Poverty

Reduce Climate_Change_and_PovertyOn December 5, officials from 195 different countries agreed on a proposal to reduce global carbon emissions in an effort to reduce climate change and poverty worldwide. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has released the drafted agreement that addresses issues relating to reducing climate change and poverty such as food security, deforestation and cutting greenhouse gas emissions. There are three global goals listed in the draft agreement, the first being to “maintain global average temperatures short of a two degrees Celsius increase over pre-industrial global temperatures.”

According to the National Centers for Environment Information (NOAA), every state in the U.S. had above-average fall temperatures during September and November of last year. The average global temperature during the month of October was the highest ever recorded.

The second goal of the climate change draft proposes increasing a nation’s ability to adapt to resulting climate change and respond effectively. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) warns that climate change is a threat to economic growth in Africa and other parts of the developing world.

A World Bank report finds that globally, poor people are at high risk for climate-related disasters, so it is important for communities to develop early warning systems. Being prepared for a catastrophe, like flooding or crop damage due to heat, can save resources and help to counter the effects of climate change on the economy.

The third global goal of the UNFCCC climate change draft suggests creating sustainable development strategies in order to create climate-resilient communities with minimized greenhouse gas emissions to reduce poverty rates.

The climate change draft to reduce poverty also includes the following proposal: “Developed countries shall provide developing countries with long-term, scaled-up, predictable, new and additional finance, technology and capability-building.”

According to the World Bank, climate change can put 100 million more people into poverty by the year 2030. John Roome, Senior Director for Climate Change at the World Bank Group, recognizes the importance of creating sustainable development strategies to reduce climate change and poverty.

He states, “We have the ability to end extreme poverty even in the face of climate change, but to succeed, climate considerations will need to be integrated into development work. And we will need to act fast, because as climate impacts increase, so will the difficulty and cost of eradicating poverty.”

– Kelsey Lay

Sources: CNN, National Centers for Environment Information, NPR, United Nations Environment Programme, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
Photo: UN

Kyrgyz Republic Forest Management and Poverty

Kyrgyz RepublicIn the Kyrgyz Republic, an Asian country along the Silk Road, 41 percent of the population relies on the forest for fuel, food and other products. Small communities that depend on the forest are especially vulnerable to mismanaged forests and poverty. The World Bank is partnering with the Kyrgyz Republic to develop a sustainable strategy for managing a major resource for the country and its rural populations.

Improving sustainable forest management is an important step for the Kyrgyz Republic in order to combat poverty. Data from the World Bank shows poverty in the Kyrgyz Republic decreased from 37 percent in 2013 to 30 percent in 2014. However, the country remains one of the poorest states in Central Asia.

A study by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) reported the Kyrgyz Republic as an ecologically rich country. The total forested area in the Kyrgyz Republic is more than 1.1 million hectares, approximately five percent of the country.

The forests are highly diverse and include spruce, walnut-fruit, juniper and riverside forests. In addition to timber and fuel, the forests provide nuts, fruits, mushrooms and other edible plants for communities. Forest products also provide food security during tough economic and agricultural times.

Beginning in 2016, The Integrated Forest Ecosystem Management Project (IFEMP) will be implemented in partnership with the Kyrgyz Republic over five years. The World Bank is financing $16 million for the project, which targets forest management at the national and leskhoz level. The leskhozes are state forest farms or agencies managing at the local level.

In a press release, the World Bank said the IFEMP’s main objectives will be accomplished “through investments in management planning, ecosystem restoration and infrastructure.” Improved data collection and distribution is an important aspect of IFEMP. The project will update the National Forest Inventory and increase access to the information at all levels. Ultimately it is estimated IFEMP will improve the management of one-tenth of Kyrgyz forests and introduce sustainable forest management to almost half of all the forests.

According to the FAO study, “forests are potentially valuable to rural people as a means of income generation and, thus, poverty reduction.” Recent efforts focusing on sustainable forest management strategies aim to better serve both the environment and those in poverty.

In the World Bank’s press release, Jean-Michel Happi, World Bank Country Manager in the Kyrgyz Republic, said, “We are pleased to support the project that will contribute to improving the lives of rural people by protecting and improving the natural resource base of forests and pastures on which the livelihoods and communities are dependent.”

– Cara Kuhlman

Sources: FAO, IMF, World Bank 1, World Bank 2
Photo: Kygryzstan

,

Learning to Read in Tonga

TongaThe Global Partnership for Education reported that if all students in low-income countries left school with basic reading skills, 171 million people could be lifted out of poverty. That would amount to a 12 percent cut in global poverty.

In Tonga, the Pacific Early Age Readiness and Learning (PEARL) project is driven towards preparing children for school. Funded by the Global Partnership for Education, and implemented by the World Bank, PEARL has two main goals. The first goal is to support children in developing key skills that will be useful at school. The second goal is helping more children learn to read and write well in their first years of elementary school.

According to the Global Partnership for Education, 40 percent of children in the developing world live in extreme poverty. Around 10.5 million children under the age of five die from preventable diseases each year because of extreme poverty. They also said investments in quality Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) can improve an individual’s well-being and close the education and poverty gap.

Early childhood is defined as the period from birth to eight years of age. Quality ECCE guides children towards fulfilling their potential and promotes social, emotional, physical and cognitive development. Young children who benefit from ECCE services are more likely to be healthy, prepared to learn, stay longer and perform better in school.

Nadia Fifita, Director at Ocean of Light International School in the Tongan capital, Nuku’alofa, said, “We see a big difference in the children who have had some early childhood [education] experience, whether that is formally through a school-based program or informally through parents.”

Tonga is not the only nation benefiting from PEARL. The project is also helping other Pacific Island countries improve policy and programming around school readiness and early grade literacy in Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Tuvalu and Vanuatu. In those countries, the World Bank and other partners are supporting each country’s Ministry of Education to make changes strengthening early education.

While early childhood education has increased globally, it is still limited and unequal in developing countries. The Global Partnership reported Sub-Saharan Africa and Arab states have shown the lowest gross enrollment ratios at 18 percent and 21 percent respectively in 2009. In some countries, children from privileged backgrounds are four times more likely to receive pre-primary education than poor children.

Tongan teacher Seini Napa’a said, “My dream is that the students in Tonga have the best future, the best readers and the best writers.”

– Kara Buckley

Sources: Global Partnership 1, Global Partnership 2, World Bank
Photo: World Bank

,

Income Growth Relieves Poverty in Rural Botswana

Rural Botswana
According to the Botswana Poverty Assessment released by the World Bank, thousands have risen out of poverty in rural Botswana as a result of government-supported programs that improved people’s livelihoods.

The report said increased agricultural income and improved welfare resulted in 158,000 people being removed from poverty in rural Botswana between 2002 and 2010.

Botswana was one of the 10 poorest countries in the world. However, it is now categorized among high middle-income countries. The World Bank said if this trend continues, less than 15 percent of the population will be living below the poverty line by 2018.

“Tackling poverty is at the heart of our National Development Plan. We are pleased to see that our welfare programs have improved the lives of many and made a dent in poverty levels,” said Olebile Gaborone, coordinator of Poverty Eradication.

The report accredits the 87 percent decrease in rural poverty to a drastic change in the demographic structure of the population and a decrease in household size and dependency rations.

Assistant Minister for Presidential Affairs and Public Administration, Dikgang Makgalemele, said “the remarkable reduction in poverty was a result of sustained robust economic growth over the past few decades and sound government policies and programs that ensure the benefits of economic growth trickle down to the whole strata of the society.”

The study also predicts that with the help of education, social protection and employment, poverty levels in Botswana could fall below 12 percent by 2018, and below six percent by 2030.

The report advises investing in education so that more Botswanans have the skills to meet the labor demand, as well as creating a private sector that focuses on creating better jobs for the impoverished population.

“We see from our research that agricultural support programs were clearly a big part of the progress achieved during the period under review,” World Bank Senior Economist Victor Sulla said. “Going forward, investments in human capital and efficient safety-net targeting will be critical to accelerating poverty reduction and reducing inequality further.”

– Marie Helene Ngom

Sources: AllAfrica, World Bank
Photo: Google Images

, ,

Improving Education in Pakistan’s Sindh Province

sindh province

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) recently pledged more than $100 million towards improving education in Pakistan‘s Sindh Province. The funds will go towards the Sindh Reading Program (SRP) which will work to improve reading and mathematics in primary school.

The Sindh Reading Program is a five-year initiative that works under the umbrella of the Sindh Basic Education Project (SBEP). The SRP aims to address critical issues that are affecting reading and mathematics scores in primary school. It will do this through continuous teacher development, improving student assessment, providing supplementary materials and promoting family involvement.

A crucial component of the SRP is its focus on improving teacher performance. The program will provide 25,000 teachers with professional development opportunities in order to improve their instructional competencies in reading and mathematics.

New lesson plans will also be provided to the teachers to increase student engagement. The format of the teachers’ lesson plans will become activity-based, which will result in a positive student-teacher relationship.

USAID’s program manager for Sindh Basic Education, Dr. Randy Hatfield, added to this sentiment when he said, “USAID is striving for quality assurance of teaching and learning practices in schools by creating avenues that empower teachers in the classroom.”

So far, the USAID-funded program has distributed more than 120,000 teaching and reading resources in almost 1,500 schools in the Sindh province. This is in an effort to reach the SRP’s goal of reaching 750,000 students through improved teaching, learning and assessment testing in grades K-5.

The program also hopes to enroll 100,000 out-of-school children, of which there are more than four million in Sindh province. The goal is for these children to reenter school, and have a greater likelihood of escaping poverty. The program also aims to enroll the parents of these children in literacy programs.

The SRP works under USAID’s Sindh Basic Education Project. The SBEP is similar to the SRP in its goals but differs in scope. Instead of focusing only on improving reading and mathematics, SBEP aims to improve Sindh’s education as a whole.

SBEP’s main objective is to increase student enrollment. It achieves this by creating school environments that are conducive to learning and renovating or constructing schools that were harmed by the 2010 floods.

USAID’s SBEP also has a goal of increasing girls’ enrollment and improving the nutrition of the students.

To date, the USAID-funded SBEP has achieved the construction of 26 new schools, the financing of seven schools, 1000 new girls enrolled in primary classes and a survey of student nutrition. Dr. Hatfield praised the program’s success when he said “We welcome and appreciate these strategic interventions by US Government, which are facilitating fulfillment…for children between the ages of five and 16 in Pakistan.”

Through its Sindh Reading Program, the Sindh Basic Education Project hopes to lower the 10 percent illiteracy rate in its province. Considering the statistically proven relationship between poverty and illiteracy, SBEP hopes to increase literacy to lower poverty.

– Andrew Wildes

Sources: Chemonics, Daily Times, Language and Literacy for All, Sbep, USAID
Picture: Google Images

Improved Seeds, Improved Lives

Improved Seeds
Posht-e-Bagh Research Farm is one of the most important research farms in northern Afghanistan. Nestled in the Dehdadi district of the Balkhl province, the farm produces breeder seeds. These genetically improved seeds flourish under local growing conditions, enabling farm productivity to increase.

Currently, the 16 employees of Posht-e-Bagh monitor 972 different types of wheat in order to assess their suitability for local growing conditions.

Every seed produced at Posht-e-Bagh passes through five initial stages: introduction (where seeds and the resulting crops are assessed for their suitability), selection, hybridization, mutation and genetic engineering. From there, a breeder seed is selected and then sent out for further processing before reaching farmers in the form of ‘improved’ seeds.

According to Abdul Wahid Wahidi, a researcher with the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL), the main goal of Posht-e-Bagh is to increase the productivity of farmers in northern Afghanistan. The eventual production and wide-scale distribution of improved seeds will help generate a long-term solution to the eradication of poverty among farmers.

Breeder seeds produced by farms like Posht-e-Bagh Research Farm are sent to one of six Improved Seed Enterprises (ISE) scattered across the country with the goal of multiplying the breeder seeds into foundation seeds. On such a farm is Khasa-Paz farm, where there are six varieties of wheat being grown on the 1.9 million square meter farm this year.

ISE farms eventually sell the seeds to one of 102 Private Seed Enterprises (PSEs) across the country. They then use these seeds to produce the certified seeds, or ‘improved’ seeds, which are distributed to local farmers.

Improved Seeds
“Improved seed is a vital input for proper crop production,” said Hesamuddin Rahimi, Afghanistan Agriculture Inputs Project (AAIP) Agronomy Manager in Balkh Province. The AAIP, launched in July 2013, is backed with $74.8 million in support from the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF). It is their aim to strengthen institutional capacity for the safety and reliability of agricultural inputs and sustainable production of certified seeds.

“Khasa-Paz farm has managed to help farmers to some extent,” Rahimi said. “As it is one of the farms where tons of registered seeds are being produced and sent to PSEs to produce improved seeds for distribution to the market.”

In fact, last year Khasa-Paz farm produced 87.5 tons of foundation seeds.

“The improved seeds result in good harvest. There is an almost 60 percent increase in yield of improved varieties compared to the local seeds,” Rahimi said. “The good thing about the improved seeds is they are suitable for this climate, a factor that increases both the quality and quantity of the crops.” The crops are also resistant against pests and diseases, adds Abdul Fatah, a farmer at Posht-e-Bagh farm.

Many farmers across Afghanistan still use low-quality seeds that result in poor harvests, a critical factor in perpetuating poverty among farmers. Those who have used the improved seeds now see the difference in output.

“Luckily now, farmers’ conditions are better because of the improved seeds,” Mohammad Ghani, a farmer who has been working on Khasa-Paz for eight years, said.

Farmer Lal Mohammad, a colleague of Ghani’s, echoes that sentiment: “Now that I see and understand the difference between good and poor quality seeds, I try to share the knowledge that I have gained with other farmers I know.”

– Kara Buckley

Sources: ARTF, CIMMYT, World Bank 1, World Bank 2, World Bank 3
Photo: The World Bank, Agchallenge2050

“Orange the World”: Calls for an End to Violence Against Women

Orange_the_worldPrevention was the central theme of the 2015 UNiTE to End Violence against Women Campaign. From the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women to Human Rights (November 25 – December 10), UNiTE called on people worldwide to “orange the world” for a brighter future without violence.

At the campaign’s official commemoration in New York, the United Nations (U.N.) presented the very first U.N. Framework on Preventing Violence Against Women. The document recognizes violence against women as not only a public health concern but also a breach of basic human rights. Women, according to the document, have a right to “physical integrity, agency, and autonomy”. These rights, according to the framework, lay at the crux of prevention efforts.

The proposed framework outlines a multi-level approach, discussing methods to prevent violence before it occurs, the recurrence of violence and the negative repercussions of violence against women. Perhaps most importantly, the document recognizes intervention must be informed by the particular social structure, culture and norms of a given setting.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 35 percent of women across the globe have experienced either intimate partner violence or non-partner sexual violence in their lifetime. Violence against women has also been shown to increase the likelihood for homelessness, unemployment and depression.

Orange the World was in line with goal five of the 2015 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) launched this past September, “Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls”. The campaign also linked up specifically with target two, which seeks “[to eliminate] all forms of violence against women and girls” by 2030.

Prevention of violence against women may also be vital to the attainment of other SDGs. WHO, for instance, cites lower levels of education as a risk factor connected to sexual violence perpetration. Achieving goal four of the SDGs, which looks to “ensure inclusive and equitable quality education”, could alleviate this risk.

Addressing violence against women is also necessary to the fight against poverty, the World Bank said. Ede Ijjasz -Velasquez, Senior Director at the World Bank, said violence against women “has very important economic consequences” that could negatively impact any given nation.

Geraldine Terry, a research associate at the University of East Anglia, also found “[poverty] and violence against women interact in complex cycles of causality.” Poverty can lead to violence against women, and violence against women can also play a causal role in poverty.

Over 70 countries participated in Orange the World. Major world landmarks such as Niagara Falls (Ontario, Canada/New York) and the Palais de Justice (the Democratic Republic of the Congo) were lit up in orange to honor the campaign.

– Jocelyn Lim

Sources: U.N. Women, Geraldine Terry, “Poverty reduction and violence against women: exploring links, assessing impacts,” , U.N. Sustainable Development Goals, U.N. Women 2, World Bank, WHO
Photo: Google Images

, ,

Smartphones: The Future of Disease Detection and Diagnosis

Smartphones_Healthcare Disease DetectionDr. Aydogan Ozcan is revolutionizing disease detection and diagnosis. The electrical engineer and bioengineer from the University of California, Los Angeles has developed a microscope that utilizes smartphones.

Smartphones seem a simple alternative to expensive lab equipment. “We have close to six billion cell phone subscribers today,” Ozcan said on the timeliness of his development. Of these users, 70 percent come from developing countries that have a greater need for this microscope.

The system weighs about 200 grams and is able to identify particles as small as 100 nanometers. According to Charles Choi of Scientific American, the microscope can also detect relatively large viruses like HIV and harmful bacteria present in food and water.

The device is easy to use, which means more people can use the smartphone microscope for their benefit. The portability and cost-effectiveness of the device may prove invaluable in remote areas without easy access to medical facilities or trained personnel.

How exactly does the microscope function?

Instead of lenses, this device creates images electronically, according to a New York Times article by Anne Eisenberg. Choi explains that molecules known as fluorophores “[that] fluoresce under certain wavelengths of light” identify and locate the target particles to which they attach.

A blue laser shined onto the particles excites them, creating a hologram from which information can be extracted. The hologram may prove quicker than microscopes in disease detection and diagnosis, according to Eisenberg.

This speed and effectiveness could play a crucial role in future research by, for instance, facilitating the screening of entire regions. This could help gather information on how diseases spread and subsequently inform future responses, Ozcan said.

Ozcan continues to develop his research for the betterment of global healthcare. Holomic LLC, a start-up he founded, “aims to commercialize the computational microscopy.” Commercialization may give his and similar innovations a greater reach and applicability.

– Jocelyn Lim

Sources: Anna Eisenberg, Charles Q. Choi, Holomic, National Geographic, Biophototonics
Picture: Google Images

The “Three Delays” at the Root of Maternal Mortality

Maternal_Mortality
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates 303,000 women will die of maternal causes by the end of 2015. While this figure has been reduced by approximately 44 percent in the past 25 years, improvements to maternal mortality rates still need to be made. Almost 99 percent of maternal deaths occur in developing regions, two-thirds of which are concentrated in sub-Saharan Africa.

In 1994, Sereen Thaddeus of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and Deborah Maine, Professor Emerita at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, linked causes of maternal mortality to “three delays:” delay in seeking care, delay in arrival at a health facility, and delay in the provision of adequate care.

Today, these three delays still make up a framework that helps in understanding what causes maternal deaths.

1. Delay in Seeking Care

Around 28 percent of maternal deaths stem from pre-existing conditions like anemia and malaria, according to WHO. Women, however, may put off seeking prepartum care because of the inadequacy of available health facilities.

The question of agency plays another role in this delay. According to Kingsley Ighobor, in some countries such as Mali, Burkina Faso and Nigeria, many women do not make the decisions over their health. This responsibility is instead left to spouses or other relatives.

2. Delay in Arrival at a Health Facility

Those living in rural areas face the major obstacle of distance from healthcare facilities. In developing nations, Thaddeus and Maine pointed out how weak infrastructure often means poor roads and slow transportation methods which can delay a woman’s arrival at a health facility.

Socioeconomic divisions within countries often mean unequal access to health facilities. WHO reports “delivery care… is strongly associated with their income, whether they live in a rural or urban area, and their level of education”.

3. Delay in the Provision of Adequate Care

Postpartum hemorrhage accounts for 27 percent of maternal deaths while obstructed labor constitutes eight percent.

Especially in developing nations, a shortage of staff, insufficient training, little to no antibiotic availability and more means health facilities are often ill-equipped to respond to a mother’s needs during and after her pregnancy.

Inadequate sanitation can also be detrimental to mothers. Maternal deaths as a result of infection rank at 15 percent.

Solutions moving forward

Goal Three, Target 3.1 of the 2015 Sustainable Development Goals seeks to “reduce the global maternal mortality rate to less than 70 per 100,000 live births by 2030.”

Achieving this goal may call for tackling the three delays that play a central role in the causes of maternal mortality.

“One of the easiest ways to continue to reduce the rate of maternal mortalities is to improve access to reproductive health”, Dana Dovey of Medical Daily said.

Educating women and relatives on reproductive health along with strengthening the infrastructure of health facilities is necessary to ensure mothers have the help they need for safe pregnancies.

– Jocelyn Lim

Sources: Medical Daily, Kingsley Ighobor, Nawal M. Nour, Sereen Thaddeus and Deborah Maine, United Nations, World Health Organization (WHO), WHO report on health from MDGs to SGDs, WHO: Trends in maternal mortality, 1990-2015
Picture: Google Images