General News

Policy round up

India: Maternal mortality rate falls, thanks to govt schemes

The significant fall of 67 points in maternal mortality ratio (MMR) has been possible because of improvement in service deliveries in the health sector through state government's flagship schemes. The Janani Shishu Suraksha Yojana (JSSY) scheme was launched in 2011, which provides free transport to pregnant women from home to hospitals for deliveries to increase institutional deliveries. The state government also launched chief minister free medicine scheme the same year. The flagship schemes were aimed to improve service delivery system for pregnant women.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/

Global target for maternal health wonโt be met: WB

The global targets for reducing maternal and child mortality by 2015 will not be met, a World Bank report on May 8th said. In the Philippines, there is a low probability of achieving the target of improving maternal health. The World Bankโs Global Monitoring Report (GMR) 2013 likewise said the target for providing sanitation facilities will also not be met by the 2015 deadline for the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). According to the GMR, which is an annual report card on MDG attainment, urbanization has been a major force behind poverty reduction and progress towards other MDGs.

http://www.malaya.com.ph

Afghan MPs block divisive women's rights law

Legislation was approved by President Karzai in 2009, but stalled by conservative MPs who deemed it un-Islamic. Afghanistan's parliament has failed to pass a law banning violence against women, a severe blow to progress made in women's rights since the Taliban was toppled over a decade ago. President Hamid Karzai approved the law by decree in 2009 and parliament's endorsement was required. But a rift between conservative and more secular members of the assembly resulted in debate being deferred to a later date.

http://www.aljazeera.com

Iran Presidential Election: Women Banned

Women who put themselves forward as presidential candidates in Iran have been told they cannot run for election. The powerful Guardian Council, which vets all the candidates, has ruled out the participation of women. No one had expected the women to gain any support from the Council but their failed attempt at least serves as a reminder of the lack of progress for women's rights in Iran.

http://news.sky.com

China: Shandong to Promote Gender Equality

East China's Shandong Province will further promote gender mainstreaming and will include gender equality content in the ideological education of middle school teachers and students, according to the Shandong Provincial Work Committee for Women and Children. The 18th Communist Party of China (CPC) National Congress included gender equality in the basic state policy for the first time. According to Vice President of Shandong Provincial Women's Federation Guo Cuifen, the province will seize the opportunity to further promote gender equality.

http://www.womenofchina.cn

Thailand-Japan to jointly develop long-term health service to support the elderly society

The Ministry of Public Health is developing a pattern of long-term home healthcare service for the elderly in collaboration with the Japanese government, to deal with the expanding aged population in Thailand. The Ministry of Public Health on May 15th called a national level meeting of units concerned to discuss and exchange ideas on future health care service for the aged. According to Public Health Minister Pradit Sintavanarong, Thailand has already established a national strategy to deal with growing healthcare service for the aged, in which cooperation from government units, the private sector and people in the community must be integrated.

http://thainews.prd.go.th/

Child marriage increases risk for maternal and infant mortality, study reveals

Countries in which girls are commonly married before the age of 18 have significantly higher rates of maternal and infant mortality, report researchers in the current online issue of the journal Violence Against Women. The study, by Anita Raj, PhD, a professor in the Department of Medicine in the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and Ulrike Boehmer, PhD, an associate professor in the Boston University School of Public Health, is the first published ecological analysis of child marriage and maternal mortality. The study demonstrates that a 10 percent reduction in girl child marriage could be associated with at 70 percent reduction in a country's maternal mortality rate.

http://www.news-medical.ne

Additional Information

Country: Africa
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Source: Population Policy Tracking and Monitoring Unit
When: 26/5/2013