Ashgabat, 1 May 2009 - Today, Mother and Child Health Center of the Ministry of Health and Medical Industry (MCH) jointly with the UNFPA, United Nations Population Fund in Turkmenistan and USAID Project "Zdrav Plus" conducted a Round Table on the outcomes of introduction of WHO initiatives in safe motherhood area.  Leading specialists of the Ministry of Health and Medical Industry, Velayat Health Departments, representatives of Departments of the Medical Institute, OB/GYNs and representatives of the sanitary epidemiological service participated in the Round Table event. Representatives of the international organizations, including World Health Organization and UNICEF, also took part in the Round Table. The Round Table was held within the joint project UNFPA and Ministry of Health and Medical Industry project "Safe motherhood – Maternal Care," which supports introduction of client-oriented minimum service standards for reproductive health, improvement of quality of care, and supply and advocacy for key reproductive health commodities.  

Participants of the Round Table discussed immediate tasks in the health care system towards improvement of obstetric care service and antenatal care.  Representatives of the international organizations made presentations on joint projects in the area of safe motherhood. In particular, Ms Jennet Appova, UNFPA Assistant Representative a.i., while acknowledging accomplishments in the area of reproductive health, including endorsement of the National Strategy “On Reproductive Health” in 2000, improvement of reproductive health indicators in the country, decrease of the level of abortions, decrease of maternal and infant mortality levels, and increase in birth space interval, has noted the role of UNFPA in bringing technical expertise for achievement of the abovementioned outputs.

During the Round Table, national specialists have made presentations. Ms Gul Murrykova, Deputy Director of the MCH, in her presentation on outcomes of implementation of the National Programme “Safe Motherhood,” highlighted achievements and challenges in implementation of the National Programme, underlying progress made in national capacity development leading to improvement of services’ quality.  

Participants have also discussed initiatives on safe motherhood and made recommendations for future work.    

* * *

UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, is an international development agency that promotes the right of every woman, man and child to enjoy a life of health and equal opportunity. UNFPA supports countries in using population data for policies and programs to reduce poverty and to ensure that every pregnancy is wanted, every birth is safe, every young person is free of HIV/AIDS, and every girl and woman is treated with dignity and respect. 

For additional information please contact: