The launch of the strategic plan to end
maternal and child death in Nairobi.
A new move to tackle maternal and child deaths has been launched in Nairobi.
The SMART Advocacy for Strategic Action (SASA)
Alliance officially launched its strategic plan on Tuesday.
The initiative aims to transform
family planning and maternal, newborn and child health policies
across sub-Saharan Africa.
Spearheaded by Partners in Population and Development Africa
Regional Office (PPD ARO) in Uganda, Jhpiego Kenya, and Pathfinder Nigeria, the
SASA Alliance brings together a dynamic technical coalition focused on
evidence-based advocacy, accountability, and sustainable policy change.
The
Alliance targets Kenya, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Senegal and Côte d’Ivoire in its
initial phase, with a broader goal of enhancing health equity across the
continent.
Dr Bashir Issak, director of Family Health at the Ministry of Health, acknowledged the urgent need to address the maternal and newborn
mortality rates because of the high numbers in the country.
“As a nation, we
are not at a very good place in terms of the number of maternal mortalities
that we have. Our
maternal mortality ratio now is 355 as per our census of 2019. That is not an
acceptable rate for this country. Bearing in mind the progress we’ve done and
the economic growth that we have achieved and the stability of the nation,” he said.
Sally Njiri, the project director, assured their commitment to equip advocacy groups with the required tools in
advocating for the end in maternal and child death.
“The SASA Alliance is dedicated to equipping citizen-led
organizations with the necessary tools, evidence, and expertise to navigate the
challenges of advocating for improvement in FP/MNCH. Our mission is to create
sustainable progress in addressing the critical challenges of strained
resources and slow policy implementation while fostering a culture of
accountability among leaders,” she said.
Maternal and child health statistics in the region highlight
the urgent need for action. According to the SASA Alliance, many sub-Saharan
African countries continue to experience high maternal and neonatal mortality
rates. The Alliance seeks to stimulate innovation, leverage additional
investments, strengthen systems and partnerships, and accelerate policy and
advocacy outcomes.
Over the past 14 years, the predecessor initiative, Advance
Family Planning (AFP), led by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health,
successfully achieved 3,454 advocacy wins and mobilized over US$ 185.7 million
for family planning programs, engaging more than 300 organizations in 42
countries. The SASA Alliance now builds on this legacy using the SMART Advocacy
approach to amplify its impact.
SASA’s strategy includes strengthening media advocacy,
enhancing local advocacy capacity, directly engaging decision-makers and
establishing a southern-based advocacy mechanism. It also aims to improve
financing mechanisms for FP/MNCH commodities, scale up implementation of
high-impact practices and foster south-to-south learning.
“By empowering local champions and ensuring citizen-led
priorities are at the forefront, we believe we can make significant strides in
reducing maternal and child deaths,” Njiri said.