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In Jolo, Sulu citizen volunteers known as PERVs (Preventing Election – Related Violence Volunteers) text in daily reports of violence or crime.

These reports are collated by the secretariat of the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue (who is spearheading this initiative) and analyzed by a researcher and a security advisor. Depending on their assessment of the situation, the incident may be escalated to the board of eminent persons known as the Tumikang Sama Sama for conflict resolution.

It may seem like a simple set-up, and in many ways it still is. The daily reports for example, are sent to the mobile phone of the person manning the CHD local Secretariat and then manually typed and organized into a Word document.

But before this arrangement, there was no way of monitoring the incidents of escalating violence in the province of Sulu, which is known to many as “Abu Sayaff Land”.  The group of islands is not easily accessible.  Apart from the inherent danger the area is known for, currently, the only way to get there is via an 8 hour ferry ride from Zamboanga.  Movement between and among other islands is also difficult and can only be done by boat, which can take as much as 5-7 hours.

It may be too early to say just how much of an impact the PERVs have made as the CHD started this reporting system only during last May’s national elections, but already there were some clan conflicts that were already averted with the effective mediation of the Tumikang Sama Sama.

This is just one example of the way that mobile technology is helping improve access to real time information – a basic problem with huge ramifications for a developing country like ours, which is made up of 7,100++ islands.

I bring this up because a similar mobile platform model is now being used to create what is known as a virtual STI Clinic.

At the Women Deliver Philippines Conference Continue Reading →

        

Women Deliver Philippines, the country’s first-ever localization of the global conference that started in London , brings to spotlight the tragic deaths of women women during pregnancy and childbirth and newborns dying during their first month of life to mobilize investment for the improvement of maternal and newborn health.

The issue becomes more urgent now as latest government report on the progress of the Millennium Development Goals show that the Philippines ‘ target to reduce maternal deaths is least likely to be achieved by 2015.

Speakers from government, private and civil society organizations, including regional development leaders will gather for the three-day conference, which opens on Wednesday, Sept. 15, to promote investment and share solutions that can prevent maternal and newborn deaths and disabilities. Everyday, 11 mothers die in the Philippines due to preventable causes during pregnancy and childbirth. (Please add data on newborn deaths per day).

Health Secretary Enrique Ona will deliver a keynote speech on the formal opening of the conference, which will be attended by dignitaries from the Australian government, the European Union, the United Nations led by UN Resident Coordinator Jacqueline Badcock, United Nations Population Fund Regional Director Nobuko Horibe and heads of other UN organizations in the Philippines . The conference is organized by the Department of Health, the United Nations and Likhaan Center for Women’s Health, with support from the European Union.

Prior to the opening, there will be a parliamentarians’ forum where topics such as the three approaches to maternal death reduction and the state of family planning and misconceptions on contraception will be discussed. Other sessions will tackle applying effective maternal and neonatal survival strategies in the Philippines .

There will also be a Youth Congress, which will address barriers to young people’s access to sexual and reproductive health information and services, and a Media Congress, which will define the media’s role in accelerating efforts to achieve the MDG targets on maternal and newborn health.

On the second day, topics for discussion include maternal mortality and human rights; sexual and reproductive rights, equity and accountability and strengthening the health system to attain MDG targets on maternal and newborn health. There will be a special session on interfaith initiatives on safe motherhood.

The third day will focus on investing financial, material and human resources for the improvement of maternal and newborn health, and exercising effective leadership and country commitment to maternal and newborn health. There will be a special session on strengthening demand through effective advocacy and communication.

International speakers for the three-day conference will also include Dr. Yu Wei Siang of Sexxie TV Singapore, Dr. Saramma Mathai of the UNFPA Asia Pacific Regional Office, Della Rose Sherratt of UNFPA, Ambassador Alistair MacDonald of the European Union, UNICEF Representative Vanessa Tobin, Dr. Hans Troedson of the World Health Organization-Western Pacific Regional Office,  Dr. Helen de Pinho of Columbia University, Dr. Mario Festin of World Health Organization-Geneva, and Jagdish Upadhyay of the UNFPA Global Programme for Reproductive Health Commodity Security.

For more information on the Women Deliver Philippines conference, contact Likhaan Center for Women’s Health at tel. no. 926-6230 or E-mail office@likhaan.org.

        

Washington, D.C. – Men are from Mars and women are from Venus, even with the kind of questions that they ask when it comes to sexual health.  If the most common question among men is: “Does size really matter?”, you wanna guess what women want to know most?

Women want to know about contraception and ask common questions like” What pill do I use with the least amount of side effects?”

That’s actually consistent with findings that state that there are still many misconceptions abo  contraception and birth control (yes, inspite of the internet!). A study that was just made by international reproductive health think tank Guttmacher Institute, says that the biggest barrier to contraception among women is lack of accurate information. The Guttmacher Institute has been pioneering reproductive health research for the last 40 years and was designated an official Collaborating Center for Reproductive Health by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Globally, Guttmacher estimates that there are about 818 million women of reproductive age who want to avoid pregnancy. But 140 million of these women are not using any form of contraception, and 75 million rely on less effective traditional methods.

In the Philippines, three in 10 Filipinas are at risk for unintended pregnancy— meaning, they are sexually active and able to have children, but do not want a child in the next two years or at all—use no contraception. Another two in 10 use traditional methods. More than half of the Philippines’ 3.4 million annual pregnancies are unintended, and 92% of these occur to women who either use no method or use a traditional one.( That perhaps provides the scientific explanation behind those accidents and the ever booming wedding industry in the Philippines.)

Sex and Sensibilities had a chance to talk to Sharon Camp, President and CEO of the Guttmacher Institute at Women Deliver 2010 Conference. Ms Camp has been to the Philippines many times to present various studies made by the Guttmacher Institute and is certainly familiar with the dilemmas of the modern Filipina.

Ms. Camp graciously agreed to doing a short video to readers about contraception — girl talk style. Ms Camp is one lady who knows contraception. She’s also the one person SAS trusts when it comes to giving out factual, accurate and non-judgmental information about contraceptives.

Because if you wanna know the truth, the second question women ask after the first is: “Will the OB not judge me if I ask about contraception knowing that I’m not married?”

        

Washington, D.C. — I was thisclose to Christiane Amanpour and Annie Lennox.

I was sitting so close to Ashley Judd that I could peak into her light blue Birkin bag and see its contents (if you must know, the visible contents  were her pen, a notepad and pouch. She likes to take off her shoes and sit Indian style).

I even managed to speak to Christy Turlington–Burns and start what I hope was an interesting conversation.

But “meeting” these ladies at Women Deliver didn’t have the effect on me as meeting DOH Secretary Esperanza Cabral did.

I was tongue-tied. I stammered and stuttered and couldn’t find the words…and for a journalist, that says something.

But what does a journalist and sexual health advocate say to the one woman who made national headlines with DOH initiatives that nearly everyone had an opinion on and were deemed either to be bold and daring or innovative and out of the box — depending on which side you’re on?

What do you say to the woman who remained composed, level-headed and rational when bishops with vein–popping indignation challenged her to a debate about condom efficacy, and only asked one question:  when?

What do you tell the woman who was asked if she, in her good conscience as a mother and a Catholic would give condoms to her unmarried son, answered pragmatically, “I don’t have to. He can very well buy them himself.”

What do you say to the woman who could discuss risqué topics like condoms and sexual behavior with such…class?

All throughout the drama following the  giving out of free condoms by the DOH on Valentine’s Day, nothing seemed to ruffle Secretary Cabral or make her lose her composure. She was no ordinary health official. She was also a lady who managed what had since then been unthinkable – merge “sexual” and “health” into one word that was not charged with politics; not laden with morality. With her matter-of-fact, determination to live up to the DOH mandate, Secretary Cabral made “sexual health” stand for the basic human right of every individual to have control over their bodies.

What do you say when you’re introduced to such a woman?

“I’m such a fan.”, I gushed.  Yeah,  along with a couple of hundred other people on your Facebook page, I could have added.

Luckily, I gathered my wits quickly enough and began with the shameless plugging, “I founded a website called Sex and Sensibilities….”

“Oh yes!”, Secretary Cabral interrupted, as a flash of recognition came across her face. “I’ve been to that site. You wrote something about MDG5.”

Again, I was at a loss for words.

“Thank you for writing that.”, Secretary Cabral said.

“My pleasure. Thank you for doing so much to advance RH.”, I think was the reply that I mustered.

“Well, I only have a few weeks left. Let’s see what happens after June 30.”,Secretary Cabral replied, echoing the anxiety of many RH advocates about the June 30 D-day.

During his campaign, one of Noynoy’s platforms was RH. He’s not on Secretary Cabral’s Facebook page, but I hope he’s one of her fans, too.

        

Washington, D.C., June 9, 2010 — A vaginal ring containing an anti-retroviral drug is currently undergoing safety and acceptability testing as a tool to prevent HIV transmission during sex. This was the announcement made today by health officials at the Women Deliver 2010 Conference in Washington, D.C.

The clinical trial known as IPM015 tests the safety and the acceptability of a vaginal ring which contains the ARV dapivirine as its active ingredient. Once inserted into the body, the silicone ring will slowly release dapivirine and provide protection against HIV for 28 days.

Dr. Zeda Rosenberg, Chief Executive Officer of International Partnership for Microbicides, the non-profit organization which makes the vaginal rings, says, “We took the vaginal ring and added an ARV component which gives it a protective element against HIV.”

“There have been well-documented cases of health care workers who have had needle prick exposures to HIV and were given a round of ARV to protect them from HIV infection.”, says Rosenberg, explaining the concept of the ring.

ARVs have been proven potent in prolonging and improving the quality of life of those living with HIV as well as reducing mother-to-child transmission of HIV.

Safety first

IPM 015 will test among 280 HIV negative women across Africa. Recruitment for the study has already started in South Africa, while clearance for testing in another 4-5 countries in Africa is in the works.

If proven successful with this first batch of testing, efficacy testing will be done.

“It is an intensive safety study that studies local, vaginal and systemic safety.” explains Rosenberg. Other subjective measures such as appeal to the end user on the basis of non- irritation and ease of insertion are also going to be tested.

“We have to make sure that we are first not going to cause any harm. Because when a woman says that it itches or burns, it is not going anywhere.”

Initial test results though showed hope for the efficacy.

“There were some concerns about the drug distributing itself well into the vagina.  We’re very happy that initial tests showed that the dapivirine distributed itself well into the vagina and migrated to the vaginal tissue. And that’s what it’s all about when it comes to microbicides – the right drug, the right place and the right time.” says Rosenberg.

If this initial testing proves successful, the next stage will be large scale efficacy testing in 2011.

Vaginal rings are already being used in developed countries for birth control and hormonal replacement therapy for menopause.

While IPM 015 does not act as a contraceptive, they are highly appealing because they are self-administered, discreet and provide protection from HIV for a month or more.

Bringing together protection and prevention

“We cannot reverse maternal deaths or fully ensure the health of women and girls without stopping the spread of STIs, which are preventable and avoidable. This marks the bringing together for the reproductive health protection and STI prevention.” said Jill Sheffield, President of Women Deliver.

Elizabeth Mataka, UN Secretary General’s Special Envoy for AIDS in Africa also welcomed this innovation in vaginal rings. “I come from a country which is the epicenter of HIV. Everyday there are 3,000 girls around the world who become infected with HIV. This vaginal ring will provide women with a reproductive health tool that can be used discreetly. They will not need the expressed consent from their partner.”

Approval of the vaginal ring by a regulatory body is targeted for 2015.

        

1.  One death every minute.

Hundreds of thousands of women due every year from pregnancy and childbirth complications, making reproductive health problems the leading cause of death worldwide among women ages 15-44. Experts estimate that 90 percent of these deaths are preventable.

2. 15 percent experience life-threatening complications.

15 percent of all pregnancies result in a potentially fatal complication during labor or delivery. Women in the developing world rarely have access to emergency medical care.

3. Girls

Pregnancy is the biggest killer of women ages 15-19 in the developing world. Nearly 70,000 young girls die every year because their bodies are not ready for parenthood.

3 in 10 Filipinas are at risk for unintended pregnancy. This means that women who are sexually active and able to have children, but who do not want a child in the next two years or at all — use no contraception.; another 2 in 10 use traditional methods. More than half of the 3.4 million annual pregnancies in the Philippines are unintended, and 92% of these occur to women who either use no method or use a traditional one.

4. Sub-Saharan Africa

In sub-Saharan Africa, 1 in 22 women is likely to die in childbirth (it’s 1 in 7,300 in developed countries), 9 out of 10 African women will lose a child during their lifetime. Only 30 percent of women in sub-saharan Africa have contact with a health worker after giving birth.

5. The United States

The US ranks 41st globally in maternal health, even though it spends more on health care per capita than any other nation in the world. African American women are four times more likely to die in childbirth than Caucasian women.

6. Disabilities

For every woman who dies in childbirth, 20 more suffer from debilitating complications. This means every year, 10 million women suffer from post-delivery infections, disabilities and severe conditions like fistula.

7. Economics

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) estimates that maternal and newborn mortality costs USD15 million in lost productivity every year.

8. Prevention

Over 200 million women who would like to choose when they get pregnant don’t have access to modern contraceptives. Giving these women access could reduce the number of maternal deaths due to unsafe abortions by 82 percent.

In the Philippines, experts say that expanding access to contraception could result in 800,000 fewer unplanned births, 500,000 fewer induced abortions and 200,000 fewer miscarriages. What’s more, it could prevent as many as 2,100 maternal deaths each year—nearly half of all deaths from pregnancy-related causes.

9. Education

Women who have completed their secondary education decide to have a skilled health worker present at their delivery 84 percent of the time – which translates to a higher chance of survival for mother and baby.

10. 11 die every day in the Philippines

Everyday, there are 11 Filipinas who die due to childbirth related complications which could have been prevented. Better access to contraceptive services could also save 120,000 productive years of women’s lives, years that are currently lost to ill-health resulting from unintended pregnancies.

11. We know what works

We know what it takes to prevent 90 percent of all maternal deaths – and they’re often simple, common–sense affordable solutions. Help change the lives of women and their families across the globe.

Adapted from www.everymothercounts.org. Sources for this fact sheet include: The Lancet’s Maternal Survival and Women Deliver Series (2006/2007), the 2005 World Health Report, British Medical Journal, UNFPA and Guttmacher Institute publications.

        

Washington, D.C. — I was one of those millions of girls who grew up devouring fashion magazines with Christy Turlington in them. I never in my wildest dreams thought that I would ever be in the same room with her, much less have something to talk to her about — apart from me gushing over her past magazine covers and how I was convinced to spend my limited allowance buying the Maybelline cosmetics that she endorsed, hoping that I, too would be “born it”.

But as it turns out, I would have the chance to meet Christy Turlington and actually had a lot to say. And it was all because of a documentary on maternal health entitled, “No Woman, No Cry” that she directed.

The documentary marks the directorial debut of Ms. Turlington and is in part based on her own personal birthing experience.

Shortly after she gave birth to her daughter, Ms. Turlington hemorrhaged. Thanks to timely care and intervention, she was saved. It made her think of all the other women out there who suffer the same kind of birth complications, but do not get the same care. “About 15 percent of all pregnancies will have complications, but not all women will get the emergency care that they need.” says Turlington.

“No Woman, No Cry”, which Turlington personally financed, is filmed in various parts of the world – in Tanzania, Bangladesh, Guatemala and the US. In Tanzania, a young pregnant woman named Janet has to walk to the rural health clinic which is one hour away. The clinic only has four beds, one mid-wife and one nurse.  On occasion, there is an attending physician.

In Bangladesh, 91 percent of all births occur at home. It is considered a disgrace for a woman to go out and give birth at a health clinic. Giving birth at home poses its own dangers, but if a woman should due to birth complications, it is considered a heroic sacrifice.

In Guatemala, “No Woman, No Cry” delved into abortion. Since abortion is illegal in Guatemala even in cases of incest or rape, women who have tried to undergo one are highly stigmatized. According to Turlington, she particularly chose this story, because in hospitals, there are wards of women who are denied post-abortion care because of the stigma attached to abortion.

Christy Turlington Burns answers questions about her documentary, "No Woman, No Cry". Other female movie makers were part of the panel.

After the film showing, I introduced myself to Ms. Turlington and told her that like Guatemala, in the Philippines abortion is also illegal even in the cases of rape and incest. I added that in the Philippines, abortion is a crime punishable by law. A woman who tries to get an abortion could be imprisoned for a maximum of 6 years and medical care practitioners who give her post-abortive care also risk punishment. Her eyes widened when I told her about this. “It’s sad that the similarity between the two countries had to be this.”, she said.

I wanted to tell her so much more. About how the poor women in Manila are outright denied contraception; how there are 4 babies born every minute and about haf of them are unwanted or unplanned. I wanted to tell her how similar to the use of an art, as with “No Woman, No Cry”, Sex and Sensibilities was trying to bring home the messages of sexual health and the need to assert reproductive health rights in a medium like the internet, all packaged in a sexy chic manner that girls would hopefully gravitate to.

But of course, there were too many people who also wanted to have their photo taken with Ms. Turlington, who wanted a copy of her video or simply wanted to congratulate her and commend her efforts on driving awareness of maternal health.

Our conversations about motherhood and other girl talk will have to be saved for another day, or may be never. When would be the next possible time that I would be in the same room as Christy Turlington?

Supermodel Christy Turlingtonn Burns and myself.

So I will go home with a picture and know that though magazine pages and fashion runways will forever differentiate us from one other, the more universal values of motherhood and the hope for equality for all mothers and their children once brought us together.

And if you think about it, these are issues all women can relate to — supermodel or not.

        

The first day of the Women Deliver 2010 Conference is about to come to an end, and wow, what a day it has been!

In my work – both as a journalist and a women’s rights activist, I have the awesome privilege of meeting and talking to some of the most amazing women who are  in equal amounts fearless and compassionate, strong and charismatic. Today’s conference guests and speakers were a force of nature. The plenary halls were brimming and positively charged with estrogen. : )

Former President of Chile, Michelle Bachelet was one of the speakers at this morning’s opening ceremony where there were an estimated 3,000++ attendees. Ms. Bachelet was a former Minister of Health and Minister of Defense (yeah, you read that right) in Chile before she was elected president.  Under her term, Chile significantly reduced maternal mortality.

Christiane Amanpour moderated the first discussion of the plenary session entitled, “Celebrate Progress and Sustain Momentum”. Ms. Amanpour, as expected, asked hard-hitting questions like how we can address cultural and religious factors that contribute to maternal mortality such as early childhood marriages. United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Executive Director Thoraya Obaid cited her own experience growing up in Saudi Arabia and answered, “It is not known for women to have such a high position [UNFPA executive director), but my  father chose to empower me and educate me even when I was young as part of being a good Muslim. It all goes back to the way that we interpret and understand religion.”

UNFPA is conducting dialogues with religious leaders and communities in countries like Pakistan and Afghanistan to discuss and present scientific facts about the benefits of investing in maternal health.

Former President of Ireland Mary Robinson spoke about how she championed reforms in Irish law which previously criminalized the buying and selling of condoms and making contraceptive pills to all women and not just those “who were married and sufferance from cycle irregularities.”

Ashley Judd recounted a story of a woman named Melody who she had met and befriended during a visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo in her role as a board member of the Population Services International (PSI). Melody, was forced into sex work at an early age and suffered health problems as a result. When PSI first assisted Melody, she had never heard of contraception and her other sexual health rights. Melody was taught livelihood skills and is now working as a hairdresser. With her earnings, she is supporting her family and siblings. Ms. Judd underscored the importance of economic empowerment of women and linked this to maternal health. “Women who are economically empowered make the right sexual health decisions; ones that are right for herself and her future.”

And that was just the morning!

Lunchtime, we all grabbed a boxed lunch and a drink and sat down to listen to Melinda Gates, co-chairperson of the Bill & Melinda Foundation. Ms. Gates gave a very personal and touching account of her encounters with women from developing communities who and how they view giving birth. Ms. Gates gave a very powerful speech about how women and children are finally on top of the many government’s agenda now and how we should take this opportunity to take concrete steps to achieve maternal health goals. “It is not that the world doesn’t know how to save the 350,000 mothers and 3 million newborns who die every year,” said Ms. Gates. “It is that we haven’t tried hard enough.”

Ms. Gates is surely putting her money where her mouth is. The Gates Foundation is pledging $1.5 billion over the next five years for family planning, maternal and child health and nutrition in developing countries. It’s the second largest donation in the foundation’s history. (the largest donation made by the Gates Foundation was $10 billion over a period of 10 years for vaccine development for the treatment of malaria and other diseases).

I will end this day with the film showing of, “No Woman, No Cry”, a film which marks the directorial debut of Christy Turlington Burns and will write about that tomorrow.

In the meantime, I will marvel at how it still and always amazes me that women from seemingly disparate backgrounds are bound together by a simple wish which was poignantly summarized by Ms. Thoraya Obaid: “I want every girl, every woman to have what I have.”

It is a wish that is also perhaps an unspoken rule of sisterhood that binds all of womanity.

        

 By Kristi Heim, Seattle Times 
 
Calling on world health leaders to do more to prevent deaths of mothers and their newborn babies, Melinda Gates said today the Gates Foundation is pledging $1.5 billion over the next five years for family planning, maternal and child health and nutrition in developing countries.
 
It’s the second largest donation in the foundation’s history, after a $10 billion pledge over 10 years for vaccine development and delivery made in January.
 
Gates challenged the idea that “large numbers of maternal and child deaths are inevitable, or even acceptable, in poor countries.”
 
“It is not that the world doesn’t know how to save the 350,000 mothers and 3 million newborns who die every year,” she said, speaking at a women’s health conference in Washington D.C. “It is that we haven’t tried hard enough.”
 
Gates also said she would make the health of women and children her personal priority as co-chair of the world’s largest charitable foundation.
 
Gates cited recent studies from the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation and collaborators in Australia that found the number of women dying from pregnancy-related causes has dropped by more than 35 percent in the past 30 years — from more than 500,000 annually in 1980 to about 343,000 in 2008.
 
She called the next several months “a critical window of opportunity to secure new global action,” as Canada will urge donor countries to endorse a major maternal and child health initiative when it hosts the G8 summit in Ontario later this month.
 
According to the study of maternal mortality in 181 countries, developing nations have made substantial progress, particularly Egypt, China, Ecuador, and Bolivia.
 
Nearly 80 percent of all maternal deaths are concentrated in 21 countries, and six countries account for more than half of them. Maternal death rates are highest in India,
Nigeria, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
 
The death rates also rose in a few high-income countries, including the United States, though changes in reporting practices may have contributed to the increase. (Looking at maternal mortality rates globally, the U.S. currently ranks number 39, between Macedonia and Lithuania.)
 
Gates said family planning could reduce deaths of mothers by 30 percent and newborns by 20 percent, but more than 200 million women have no access to contraception.
 
“As a woman, I can’t imagine being denied access to the tools I need to plan,” she said. “It is my basic right to be able to choose when to have children.”

        

WASHINGTON, DC, 4 June 2010 – Women Deliver 2010, the world’s largest conference on women’s health and empowerment in more than a decade opened today Monday, June 7, with a call to increase funding commitments for maternal, reproductive, and newborn health by US$12 billion each year.

More than 3,000 representatives from nearly 140 countries will highlight the urgent need to save the lives of the 350,000-500,000 women who die from pregnancy- and childbirth-related causes each year, citing new economic rationale for investing in women.

“Women deliver enormous social and economic benefits to their families, communities, and nations,” said Jill Sheffield, President of Women Deliver. “We’ve made great progress on maternal health in many areas of the world, but our leaders need to realize that this issue is at the core of global development, economic well-being, and even national security. When women survive, families—and societies—thrive.”

Women Deliver will feature UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, US Secretary of HHS Kathleen Sebelius, former President of Chile Michelle Bachelet, WHO Director-General Margaret Chan, Melinda Gates, Arianna Huffington, Christiane Amanpour, Ashley Judd, and Christy Turlington. The attendance of the UN Secretary-General together with the heads of 5 UN agencies will be unprecedented for a non-UN conference.

The conference comes at a critical moment, three weeks before the G8 Summit, where host country Canada has made global maternal and reproductive health a major focus.

Cost-effective solutions to prevent maternal deaths already exist. The Guttmacher Institute and UNFPA estimate that ensuring access to modern contraception could prevent up to a third of maternal deaths. An estimated 215 million women worldwide want to avoid or delay pregnancy, but are not using effective contraceptives.

Ensuring access to skilled care before, during and after pregnancy and childbirth, including emergency obstetric care, is another critically needed solution. Access to safe abortion, when and where legal, will also help to reduce maternal mortality; currently nearly 70,000 women die each year from unsafe abortion.

Governments and donors have consistently underfunded maternal and reproductive health issues. As a result, few developing countries are on track to meet Millennium Development Goal 5, which aims to reduce maternal mortality by three-quarters and ensure universal access to reproductive health by the year 2015.

Addressing the current maternal and neonatal mortality rates and massive unmet contraceptive needs with proven interventions would cost US$24 billion per year, or just US $4.50 per capita worldwide, about double the current level of investment. Such an investment would save 70 percent of the women’s lives and 44 percent of the newborn lives currently lost. Benefits would extend beyond health, to improving the stability and economic prosperity of societies and nations.

“We know what needs to be done to save women’s lives, and everyone has a stake,” said Women Deliver conference Co-Chair Dr. Fred Sai of Ghana. “We are calling on governments to double today’s investment in maternal health— a small price to pay that would yield extraordinary return. In a world of difficult problems, here is a major challenge we can rise to, and overcome.”

Maternal mortality in the Philippines 

In the Philippines, maternal health has also been labeled as a public health concern.  Every day, there are 11 Filipinas who die every day due to childbirth complications such as pregnancy induced hypertension, eclampsia and hemorrhage. These conditions are large preventable given the right medical care by a skilled birth attendant, a luxury that only 60% of women enjoy.  That means, that every day, 11 women needlessly die and many more children are orphaned.

Social inequity and unequal access to reproductive services are major factors. Dr. Alberto Romualdez, former DOH Secretary and current Forum for Family Planning looks at social indicators like life expectancy and maternal health in Metro Manila, Metro Cebu and Metro Davao and says that they can be compared to the statistics of the most developed countries. While the same social indicators in other provinces like ARMM, Northern Samar are comparable to the least developing countries in the world, like Africa.

Currently, we have made insignificant progress on maternal mortality and we will most likely not meet our MDG 5.

DOH Secretary Esperanza Cabral and Likhaan Center for Women’s Health executive director, Junice Melgar will be among the Filipinas who will be speaking at Women Deliver.  Stay tuned to Sex and Senisbilities for coverage of this talk and conference coverage.

Let’s all do what we can to learn and prevent maternal deaths so that no Filipina will ever have to fear for her life when giving life.

 –With additional reporting by Ana Santos