Maternal mortality disturbing â€" Danish envoy
THE Danish Ambassador to Uganda, Nathalia Feinberg has expressed concern over the high maternal mortality rate in the country, especially among the rural poor.
By Dismus Buregyeya
THE Danish Ambassador to Uganda, Nathalia Feinberg has expressed concern over the high maternal mortality rate in the country, especially among the rural poor.
“With 435 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births, Uganda has one of the highest rates of maternal mortality in the world,†Feinberg said.
Speaking during the commissioning of the sh4b buildings constructed by DANIDA for Villa Maria School of Nursing in Masaka yesterday, Feinberg said the government of Denmark had made interventions to save expectant mothers, especially those in the rural areas.
“Large disparities still exist, with poor women in the remote areas least likely to receive adequate care. This is especially true for areas where the number of skilled health workers remains low,†she said.
Feinberg noted that Denmark had contributed support to the health sector for the past two decades, particularly in the area of human resource development, to reduce maternal and child mortality.
She added that the government of Denmark would also support the renovation and construction of some private and not-for-profit medical schools in the northern area with the aim of increasing the number of health workers in the rural areas.
She said Denmark was contributing to a basket fund, together with the health ministry and other development partners, to provide scholarships for medical students from disadvantaged districts.
Feinberg said the national development bearing would be retarded if the poor economic status of women was not addressed. “Poor maternal health has consequences on poverty. Most of the productivity in Uganda is done by women. We need to foster stainability of the developmental and health interventions for women,†she said.
Bishop John Baptist Kaggwa of Masaka Diocese expressed fear over the phasing out of the DANIDA support programmes.
“I know that it is difficult to continue aiding our people for ever but the phasing out of DANIDA will affect us and we need to work hard to bridge the support gap,†Bishop Kaggwa said.
The state minister for health, James Kakooza, however, said DANADA had not completely pulled out their support: “DANIDA is still providing support in the areas of HIV/AIDS and infrastructure development of health facilities, so they have not completely phased out their support.â€
He said government was going to increase the pay of medical workers who operate in the hard to reach districts. He warned medical workers against unethical conduct especially the sale of government drugs.
THE Danish Ambassador to Uganda, Nathalia Feinberg has expressed concern over the high maternal mortality rate in the country, especially among the rural poor.
“With 435 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births, Uganda has one of the highest rates of maternal mortality in the world,†Feinberg said.
Speaking during the commissioning of the sh4b buildings constructed by DANIDA for Villa Maria School of Nursing in Masaka yesterday, Feinberg said the government of Denmark had made interventions to save expectant mothers, especially those in the rural areas.
“Large disparities still exist, with poor women in the remote areas least likely to receive adequate care. This is especially true for areas where the number of skilled health workers remains low,†she said.
Feinberg noted that Denmark had contributed support to the health sector for the past two decades, particularly in the area of human resource development, to reduce maternal and child mortality.
She added that the government of Denmark would also support the renovation and construction of some private and not-for-profit medical schools in the northern area with the aim of increasing the number of health workers in the rural areas.
She said Denmark was contributing to a basket fund, together with the health ministry and other development partners, to provide scholarships for medical students from disadvantaged districts.
Feinberg said the national development bearing would be retarded if the poor economic status of women was not addressed. “Poor maternal health has consequences on poverty. Most of the productivity in Uganda is done by women. We need to foster stainability of the developmental and health interventions for women,†she said.
Bishop John Baptist Kaggwa of Masaka Diocese expressed fear over the phasing out of the DANIDA support programmes.
“I know that it is difficult to continue aiding our people for ever but the phasing out of DANIDA will affect us and we need to work hard to bridge the support gap,†Bishop Kaggwa said.
The state minister for health, James Kakooza, however, said DANADA had not completely pulled out their support: “DANIDA is still providing support in the areas of HIV/AIDS and infrastructure development of health facilities, so they have not completely phased out their support.â€
He said government was going to increase the pay of medical workers who operate in the hard to reach districts. He warned medical workers against unethical conduct especially the sale of government drugs.