Challenges as Dar marks WP Day

Dar es Salaam. Tanzania joins nations around the globe to mark the World Population Day (WP) today with deputy minister for Health, Community Development, Gender, Elderly and Children Dr. Hamisi Kigwangala expected to grace the occasion.

However, as the country celebrates the WP Day, there are a myriad of challenges facing the health sector, which includes high maternal deaths, shortage of health facilities and wanting family planning awareness.

Family planning awareness and unfriendly health facilities have been cited as major causes of early pregnancies and maternal deaths respectively.

This year’s celebrations carry a theme “Family Planning: Empowering People, Developing Nations” and Tanzania is poised to mark the day by providing maternal health and family planning awareness to the public.

Currently, the maternal mortality rate stands at 556 deaths per 100,000 live births, which is a result of lack of access to emergency obstetric care and limited ability of women to access health services independently.

The United Nation Population Fund (UNFPA) sexual reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health programme manager, Ms Felister Bwana, disclosed over the weekend that only 40 per cent of friendly health facilities provide family planning awareness to adolescents in the country, calling on the government to strive in taking the services to the grassroots. “It’s high time the government improved facilities to the lowest level if we are to decrease the rate of early pregnancies and maternal deaths,” she said.

Ms Bwana added that Tanzania is one of the countries with the fastest population growth rate, but noted that the ratio of maternal deaths has increased from 451 to 556 out 100,000 pregnant mothers annually.

“If the adolescents across the country are to be provided with appropriate reproductive health education, there would be a significant drop in early pregnancies and maternal deaths,” she said. Ms Bwana stated that evidence shows that family planning can reduce maternal deaths by 20 to 35 per cent. Ministry of health’s Contraceptive Security coordinator Dr. Cosmas Swai said the government has so far promised to invest plenty of money in family planning, expressing optimism that conditions will improve in the near future.

“The government is planning to set aside some Sh14 billion, which we believe will be helpful in the fight against early pregnancies and maternal deaths,” said Dr Swai.

Besides, Dr. Swai admitted that some of the family planning drugs have adverse side effects, but urged people not to shun them, instead, they should consult doctors.

“There are side effects of some drugs, but these are always temporary. People should not stop using them, they should seek advice from doctors if the condition worsens or takes longer to come back to normal,” he said.