The mainly rural area of Androy has been beset by a series of humanitarian crises affecting the most vulnerable people there, including mothers-to-be, but the provision of Simple, inexpensive maternity equipment is encouraging more women to access more services that will help keep them and their babies healthy.
In front of International Day of the Midwifeheld annually on May 5, Jeanne Bernadine Rasoanirina, a midwife in Behara, Androy, spoke to UN Newsby Daniel Dickinson on the challenges of reaching the poorest women.
“This is a very poor rural area, many women are embarrassed to go to the clinic to give birth because they don’t even have money for transportation or to buy clean cloth to wrap their babies. They don’t want others to know they are poor.
Mothers-to-be here receive all the support they need to give birth completely free of charge thanks to the government and UN agencies, including [the UN reproductive health agency] UNFPA.[The UN Children’s Fund] UNICEF and the World Food Program (WFP) provides vital nutrition advice and support, which complements our work and is essential for keeping mothers and their children healthy.
Even though I’ve been doing this job for 19 years, I’m still very sad when there are women who arrive without the means to take care of themselves. They may wear dirty clothes, which is a sign of poverty but also of ignorance or lack of respect for cleanliness.
Last week I gave birth to 3 babies and over the past month I have attended over 330 pre and post natal counseling sessions so there is definitely a need for the service.
Jeanne Bernadine Rasoanirina sits at her desk with her newly delivered maternity kit.
Kit for pregnant women
I think more women will be encouraged to come to the health center because yesterday we delivered 240 pregnancy kits [supported by UNFPA] for the first time in over a year, which will last about three months.
The kit includes everything a mother needs to give birth – gloves, gauze, umbilical cord clamp and syringe to give birth, then cloths and clothes to dress the baby. They will remove the shame that mothers feel.
It’s frustrating that we don’t have a steady supply because this small item can make a big difference. That means more women will come to our medical centers, which are safer places to give birth. In 2023, we only had successful births; There were no deaths. We don’t know how many women gave birth at home or how many children and mothers died. There is definitely a risk of death if a woman does not come here to give birth.
polygamy
There are still many cultural barriers to safe childbirth in southern Madagascar. Children are considered a sign of wealth, even if the family does not have enough means to take good care of them, so it is normal to have many children, sometimes up to 10 children.
Polygamy was also practiced, and some men had up to five wives and wanted children with all of them. We provide information here and training on these issues, but we must always be sensitive to local culture.”
