Conflict in the CAR Turns Lives of Mothers and Children Upside-Down

Plan International is working to bring relief to refugees in Cameroon.

 

A young refugee mother from the Central African Republic (CAR) is now depending on the support of Plan International USA to get through a time of uncertainty, turmoil, and heartache.

Kadidja, 15, is one of tens of thousands of refugees who fled to Cameroon to escape the bloody violence in CAR. Along with her 2-year-old daughter, Mariama, she trekked for four months to escape the fighting, completing the arduous journey of more than 600 kilometers amid violence, starvation, and a real threat of death.
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Singing loud and proud for mothers and babies in Zimbabwe

In rural Zimbabwe, there’s a buzz in the air. It’s not the sound of traffic or the hum of cattle. It’s the sound of a choir group singing songs that have everyone on their feet.

The group is made up of volunteer health workers, community volunteers and Plan staff. Their harmonized songs promote the importance of maternal, newborn and child health (MNCH). They may sing about prenatal and postnatal health, using a skilled birth attendant, or visiting a health facility.

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Seeing the results: Our work to help mothers and children

Becoming a mom shouldn’t be a game of risk – it should be the happiest day of your life. But for many mothers, pregnancy and childbirth is an undertaking full of danger. In fact, 358,000 women die during pregnancy and childbirth every year.

Plan Canada and other Canadian organizations played an important role in making sure that maternal, newborn and child health (MNCH) was a top priority for the Canadian government at the G8 Summit in 2010. As a result, the Muskoka initiative was born. The initiative was formed to address the significant gaps in the health of mothers, newborns and children in developing countries.

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Meet 3 moms benefiting from our work in maternal health

Every year, 358,000 women die during pregnancy and childbirth. That’s over 800 women every day. 99% of these deaths occur in developing countries and the majority of them are preventable. But access to quality health care can save the lives of thousands of mothers and babies every year.

Plan’s work to improve the health of mothers and their babies has impacted thousands of women in hard-to-reach communities across 7 countries – Ghana, Mali, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Bangladesh, Zimbabwe and Bolivia. Projects in maternal and newborn health include:

• Training health care workers
• Improving health care services offered to mothers before and after childbirth
• Helping mothers access health care
• Ensuring mothers and babies have access to nutritious food
• Providing crucial vaccinations, medication and appropriate treatment.

See it in action! Meet some of the women benefiting from our Work.

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Plan International Supports Healthy Minds and Bodies for Mothers and Children in Sri Lanka

Plan International is fighting malnutrition and supporting health and well-being in Sri Lanka.

 

Mothers in Sri Lanka who said they were worried about child malnutrition are learning new ways to improve their lives and health, as well as those of their children.

Plan is working with the Foundation for Health Promotion and Rajarata University to train local health officials on how to best work with villagers to create an environment where they feel comfortable raising concerns and coming up with their own solutions.

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Girls Taking on Role of Mothers During Conflict

Separated from their parents during the conflict, South Sudan’s teenage refugee girls
are taking on the role of mothers to their younger siblings in the Uganda camps. However, getting back to school – and normality – is key if the girls are to escape the burden of early parenthood, and survive the crisis with their education intact.

“We started hearing the gun shots while our parents were out, and we tried to stay at home, but we heard people screaming. So we packed our things and left.” Læs mere her!

Keeping mothers and their newborns alive

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 800 women die every day due to complications during pregnancy and childbirth. Only 1% of these deaths occur in high-income countries.

That means that 99% of all maternal deaths occur in developing countries. But the majority of these deaths are preventable through simple, cost-effective interventions.

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