Minister for Health, Community Development, Gender, Elderly and Children, Ms. Ummy Mwalimu.
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By Jonas Kamaleki- Maelezo
The Ministry of Health,
Community Development, Gender, Elderly and Children is set to give a
quarterly report on maternal deaths during delivery in order to minimize
mothers’ deaths in the country.
This was revealed by the
Minister for Health, Community Development, Gender, Elderly and
Children, Ms. Ummy Mwalimu at the opening of the Health Women Leaders
Conference in Dar es Salaam. “My ministry will ensure that all District
Councils are providing a quarterly report on the deaths that occur
during delivery.” Said Ummy Mwalimu. These reports according to the
minister will be in line with maternal deaths reduction.
She also said the 5th Phase Government will construct rooms for operations in all health centres countrywide to rescue women’s life at delivery.
On promoting women in the decision making bodies, Ms. Ummy said
she will be appointing 30 percent of women in the boards under her
ministry. She mentioned such boards as the Tanzania Food and Drug
Authority (TFDA), Medical Store Department (MSD) and Pharmacy Board.
She noted that promotion of
women depends largely on the level of education, thus she urged girls to
study hard and perform well in order to acquire higher leadership
positions. “Fifty – fifty in leadership without education is just
politics, so girls you need to be educated so as to be considered in
high ranking leadership positions,” added Ummy Mwalimu.
Meanwhile, the Executive
Chairperson of the Tanzania Commission for AIDS (TACAIDS), Ms. Fatuma
Mrisho urged girls to be busy with studies so as to avoid involving
themselves with love affairs thus concentrating with academic issues.
She further said that when girls are fully engaged with studies they
will be free from HIV/AIDS by about 7 per cent.
Stressing on women empowerment,
the Danish Ambassador in Tanzania, Mr. Einar Hebogård Jensen said women
need to have equal access to education, healthcare, resources and
leadership. He said there was a need to respect and empower them for the
betterment of the community.
This was a pre-conference that will be followed by the largest
conference on the health, rights and well-being of girls and women that
will take place on 16-19 May 2016
in Copenhagen, Denmark. It will attract more than 5,000 people – world
leaders, academics, policy makers, activists, media, royalty, civil
society and private sector representatives.