PAHO Joins Clinton Global Initiative To Save Mothers' And Children's Lives

Main Category: Pregnancy / Obstetrics
Also Included In: Women's Health / Gynecology;  Pediatrics / Children's Health
Article Date: 30 Sep 2008 - 5:00 PDT

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The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) announced a new program of proven, low-cost interventions for maternal and child health that will benefit 750,000 pregnant women and 1.5 million children under 2 in 10 Latin American countries.

PAHO announced the five-year, $60.5 million program as part of the Clinton Global Initiative's (CGI) Water and Sanitation Mega-Commitment, at the 2008 annual meeting of CGI this week in New York City.

The PAHO program will provide micronutrient supplementation and deworming medicine to pregnant women in 10 countries, along with pesticide-treated bed nets in malaria-endemic areas.

It will also promote hygienic deliveries, delayed umbilical cord clamping, and cord and full-body antiseptic cleansing for newborns.

During early childhood, the program will provide iron and vitamin A supplementation as well as pesticide-treated nets in malaria-endemic areas. It will also promote early breastfeeding and appropriate complementary feeding of infants to prevent chronic malnutrition.

The program will raise public awareness and knowledge through large-scale communication and social mobilization campaigns that promote hand washing and basic sanitation, including proper storage of drinking water.

To implement the program, PAHO will work with ministries of health, municipalities, and other partners, including the U.N. Alliance for Nutrition and Development, to develop local action plans with an emphasis on multisectoral coordination, culturally appropriate communication, and social participation.

The program will be carried out in Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Paraguay and Peru.

PAHO's program is one of 10 "Commitments to Action" by United Nations agencies announced at this year's CGI meeting.

About PAHO

PAHO, founded in 1902, works with all the countries of the Americas to improve the health and quality of life of their peoples. It also serves as the Regional Office for the Americas of the World Health Organization (WHO).

About the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI)

Established in 2005 as a project of the non-partisan William J. Clinton Foundation, the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) convenes global leaders to devise and implement innovative solutions to some of the world's most pressing challenges. Since 2005, CGI members have made nearly 1,000 Commitments to Action valued at upwards of $30 billion to improve more than 200 million lives in over 150 countries around the world. Through past Annual Meetings, CGI has brought together more than 80 current and former heads of state, hundreds of top CEOs and non-profit leaders, major philanthropists, and 10 of the last 16 Nobel Peace Laureates.

PAHO