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Women and their children
visit a clinic at Sinza Health Centre in Tanzania's capital Dar es Salaam May
2, 2011. Photo: Reuters/Emmanuel Kwitema
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When Halima Rahim became a mother for the first time, friends
and acquaintances in Tanzania's commercial capital, Dar-es-Salaam, were quick
to offer advice and help. Had Rahim listened to
them, she would have raised her baby on porridge rather than breast milk, not realizing
the risk to her daughter's health. According to the World
Health Organization (WHO), infants who are partly breastfed or not breastfed at
all may face a higher risk of death from diarrhoea and other infections.
The global health body
recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of an infant's
life. Breast milk not only protects newborn babies from infection, it also
lowers mortality among malnourished children.
Reuters report continues:
Luckily, Rahim knew
better than her well-meaning friends, having signed up to receive text messages
on staying healthy during pregnancy and after giving birth as part of a
government campaign to improve maternal and newborn health in the east African
country.
"Some people were
telling me breast milk is not enough for the baby, they even advised me to give
my baby porridge so that she doesn't feel hungry. They were wrong," Rahim,
28, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation in Mbagala, a sprawling suburb known
for its dilapidated drainage systems and clogged roads.
Since the campaign,
Wazazi Nipendeni, "Parents Love Me" in Swahili, was introduced three
years ago, some 125,000 pregnant women have registered for the free text
messages.
More than 5 million text
messages have been sent to subscribers, who get health information and
reminders for doctor's appointments direct to their mobile phones - many of
them in distant parts of Tanzania.
Harnessing Technology
Mobile phone technology
in Tanzania, as in other parts of Africa, has proved a powerful tool in
reaching the most remote populations.
With 25 million
subscribers, the country has the highest rate of text messages sent per month
in east Africa, according to the Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority,
a government agency overseeing the communications sector.
Tanzania has made some
progress in preventing deaths from complications related to childbirth, but has
failed to meet a Millennium Development Goal of reducing maternal deaths to 193
per 100,000 live births from 454 per 100,000 by the end of 2015.
The government has blamed
the failure on a shortage of skilled health workers and well-equipped clinics,
the impact of HIV/AIDS, a lack of funding and poor awareness of reproductive
health issues among women.
Adelika Kessy almost died
giving birth three years ago after developing anaemia weeks a few earlier. A
lack of awareness meant she did not have routine check-ups.
"I was feeling tired
and weak. It happened so suddenly and I didn't know what do," Kessy told
the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
"I was too weak to
give birth naturally, even after undergoing several blood transfusions. In the
end, the doctors decided to carry out a Caesarean section."
The 36-year-old housewife
is now expecting her third child, and relies on SMS reminders about her clinic
appointments.
Pamela Kweka, an official
from the Tanzania Communication and Development Center, which is also involved
in the campaign, said Wazazi Nipendeni initially targeted pregnant women but has
expanded to include men, midwives and nurses.
"We have realised
that engaging women alone is not enough. We need to involve all members of the
society to make the campaign more effective," she told the Thomson Reuters
Foundation.
Source: Thomson Reuters
Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters
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