Event Lives In The Balance series - Maternal, Newborn and Child Health
Date May 24, 2023
Time 18:00 – 20:00 CET
Location Geneva and Online

Description

Where you live should not determine if you live; however, this remains the case for millions of women and children around the world. Since 2016, global progress has stagnated on maternal deaths. We are severely off course in meeting the Sustainable Development Goals target for reducing maternal mortality, which is critically undermining women’s rights. Preterm birth is the single largest cause of death for children under five years of age, accounting for nearly 18 per cent of these deaths, and responsible for more than a third of all neonatal deaths (first month of life).

Several key progress reports and data have been released recently, including the Together for Change (joint ENAP/EPMM progress report) and Born Too Soon: Decade of Change report. Together, these reports raise major concerns about stalling progress, but they also shine a light on inspiring strides made by countries that can be replicated on a wider scale.

One red thread throughout- is the vital need for concerted multi-stakeholder collaboration and cooperation necessary to advance this agenda. The first biennial International Maternal Newborn Health Conference (IMNHC) provided a unique platform to galvanize the momentum necessary to advance progress and commitments on MNCH.

Objective

Building on the energy from IMNHC, and equipped with the latest evidence and data, this dialogue provided a platform to discuss and commit to the practical actions that all partners must take for every mother, baby and child to not only to survive, but thrive throughout the life course.

The Lives in the Balance was a series of three events, each with its own specific focus, all anchored in the WHA report on ‘Committing to Implementation of the Global Strategy for Women’s, Children’s and Adolescents’ Health (2016–2030)’. The previous two events in the series were: