Coca-Cola Company is set to launch a new programme
tagged: “The Safe Birth Initiative” to support the Ministries of Health in
Nigeria and Ivory Coast to tackle the high incidence of maternal and newborn
mortalities.
Stating this during a courtesy visit to Alassane
Ouattara, the President of the
Republic of Ivory Coast, the Coca-Cola Europe, Middle East & Africa (EMEA)
Group President, Brian Smith, said the programme will focus on strengthening
the capacity of maternity and neonatal units in selected public hospitals in
the two countries.
Smith said;“With US$20 million grant from
Coca-Cola to Medshare International Inc., the US-based not-for-profit NGO will
source essential equipment, kits and supplies worth about US$20 million to
enable safe deliveries and post-delivery emergency care for both mothers and
their newborns.”
“The programme will also include the training of
biomedical technicians and other appropriate hospital personnel by Medshare
International on the operation, repair and maintenance of the donated equipment
as well as the reactivation of a huge stock of faulty or abandoned equipment in
public hospitals which is a major challenge for the country’s healthcare
delivery system.
According to UNICEF’s 2016 State of the World’s
Children report, 38 out of every 1,000 babies die within the first 28 days of
birth while 645 out of 100,000 women die during or shortly after child birth
due to avoidable conditions.
In Nigeria on the other hand, about 40,000 women
and 260,000 newborns (excluding 300,000 stillborn) die during or shortly after
childbirth annually. For this reason, neonatal mortality is considered as one
of the worst public health crises in Nigeria and a major priority for the
Government in its resolve to meet the Sustainable Development Goals, SDGs.
Smith added that, “The commitment to help promote
sustainable development in our communities is a fundamental part of Coca-Cola’s
strategy for sustainable business growth. This program which demonstrates this
commitment will help save the precious lives of many mothers and newborns and
also support the remarkable efforts of the Ivorian government at rebuilding
this vibrant country”.
Responding, the Ivory President Ouattara welcomed
Coca-Cola’s support for the Health Ministry, noting that maternal and child
health was an area the country recorded a weak performance under the Millennium
Development Goals.
Peter Njonjo, President of Coca-Cola West Africa
Business Unit, said “Coca-Cola has a special relationship with women who are
pillars of our business, especially in Africa where women play a dominant role
in our distribution and retail network.
Just like our 5by20 Initiative, the Safe Birth
Initiative which we will be implementing in Ivory Coast and Nigeria is a
platform enabling us to promote the wellbeing of women, in this case, as it
relates to the special but vulnerable experience of childbirth”.
