An association bringing together midwives in the country was, yesterday, launched alongside the State of World’s Midwifery report.

The association will aim at strengthening midwifery, follow up on their work as well as improve the quality of midwives’ lives and have a strategic plan to improve their profession.

The Minister of Health, Dr Agnes Binangwaho, who presided over the event said that the state of midwifery has improved in the country. 

"Three years ago, eight women a day used to die in Rwanda during child birth but now we have less than one, which is a big achievement,” the Minister said.

The minister attributed this success to the 15,000 health workers in various parts of the country. She said that these make follow ups on pregnant women, encourage them to go for antenatal care and all the required tests before child birth and also persuade them to give birth from hospitals.

Dr Binangwaho, who also launched the state of World’s Midwifery Report at the same event, said that there is a plan to ensure that midwives have further education and training.

She said that they will be training the mid wives, every three years, so as to improve their knowledge, skills and quality of work.

The Minister, while launching the report, observed that it is very important for Rwanda to strengthen midwifery.

She urged the midwife association members to read the report and see where there is need for improvement. She emphasized the need for Rwandan midwives to enroll for further studies so as to improve in their service delivery to expectant mothers.

Josephine Murekezi, the newly elected chairperson of the Rwanda Midwives Association, said that they plan to increase the number of midwives in rural areas.

"We had only 5 midwives in Rwanda in 1995 but today we have 450. We have a plan to improve midwifery in Rwanda and reduce the deaths of mothers giving birth, to zero,” Murekezi said.

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