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: Aljazeera America
Nearly a year into the Ebola crisis ravaging West Africa, the deadly disease has spread far beyond the region, reaching Spain, Germany, France, Australia and the United States.
Source: Take Part
The woman in the orange dress with a cheery bluebird print was the first to arrive, at 6 a.m.
Source: Vanguard
Saturday 25th of October will forever remain evergreen in the lives of over 5,000 women in Lagos as they benefitted from free health services offered by the Arise Women of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, City of David, Lagos during its 6th Annual Arise Women's conference.
Source: Zambia Daily Mail
PANOS Southern Africa senior programmes officer Gillies Kasongo says reproductive health services should be made user -friendly for teenagers to curb unwanted pregnancies and illegal abortions.
Source: East African Business Week
Last week, Uganda held the 5th International Conference of Obstetric Fistula Surgeons.
Source: Global Post
The East African Parliament on Thursday said that the East African Community (EAC) partner states are lagging behind in achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) Four and Five on child and maternal health.
Source: Mmedionline
Most of these 'clinics' are now using the power of the social media to target pregnant Batswana women through advertisements, especially by creating Facebook pages.
Source: Independent European Daily Express
Experts are raising alarm that years of HIV interventions throughout Africa have failed to stop infection among young women 15 to 24 years old.
Source: East African Community
The 7th Ordinary Meeting of the East African Inter-parliamentary Forum on Health Population and Development opened today at the Hilton Hotel, in Nairobi, Kenya.
Source: The Daily Vox
The Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) on Tuesday launched a global funding campaign to raise R10-million rand by the end of November.
Source: The Guardian
But report warns population growth could outpace family planning programmes in some countries despite range of contraception initiatives