South Sudan: MAGNA opened a new maternity ward, mothers have a chance to safely deliver healthy babies

Despite the growing conflicts, complicated social and safety situation in South Sudan, humanitarian organization MAGNA managed to open a new maternity hospital this month. It will provide a health care to mothers with children in Terekeka area, Central Equatoria.

„In my village the majority of women give birth at home, many women and children do not survive the complicated delivery,“ says one of the lucky mothers in the new MAGNA maternity facility in Terekeka area.

South Sudan is considered as a country with the highest women and neonatal mortality in the world. According to the Ministry of Health more than 3.4 milion of women from South Sudan will need reproductive health care services. Specifically up to 850.000 of women in the reproductive age need a life saving health care also due to the high incidence of sexual violence. Military conflict and consequently poor infrastructure, inadequate transport services, big distances to the health facilities and harmful local practices play a big role in maternal and neonatal mortality.

„We are very happy, that the accessibility of the health services for women and children has significantly improved thanks to opening of a new maternity centre. More than 33.505 people in the Rijong district will benefit from that,“ said Paulino Pitya, regional chief of the health care in Rijong area, where MAGNA operates.

Newly opened maternity hospital operates as a maternity centre, provides a health care to children up to five years old, pregnant women, lactating mothers, women in a reproductive age, HIV testing and treatment, vaccinations against the fatal deseases like cholera, malaria or measles. It also participates in trainings and strenghtening of the medical staff capacities.

MAGNA has been providing in South Sudan primary health care with an objective to improve the quality of comprehensive primary and community health services since the year 2011. Currently the main priority of MAGNA field workers is to provide health care to children and women in the refugee camp in Juba, which was created after the outbreak of the civil war in 2013. MAGNA is the only provider of vaccination in this refugee camp, where currently live more than 65.000 people.