Guyana MDG Acceleration FRAMEWORK Improve Maternal Health
Guyana MDG Acceleration FRAMEWORK Improve Maternal Health
January 6, 2019
In evaluating Guyana’s progress toward the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the Government of Guyana has identified MDG 5 – improve maternal health – as the goal that needs prioritization if its associated targets are to be achieved by 2015 and thus a higher standard of maternal health care is to be established and sustained in the long run. Although there has been progress toward this goal, significant challenges remain. To identify the current major bottlenecks in this area, a situational analysis was carried out using the MDG Acceleration Framework (MAF) and concrete solutions were then selected in line with the prioritized bottlenecks. A wide range of solutions was selected to introduce and sustain improved standards of care in the maternal health sector. These include, among others, expanding training programmes for health care professionals; recruiting qualified OB/GYN specialists to support the creation of a local cadre of experts in maternal health; equipping maternity wards of the national referral hospital and other key regional hospitals; strengthening information and awareness programmes; improving communication and transportation between health facilities; strengthening systems for M&E and for enforcing existing protocols and guidelines; and supporting the update of sexual and reproductive health policy The aim of the resulting MAF Action Plan is two fold: on the one hand, it presents a framework to guide the implementation of interventions for accelerating progress toward maternal health so that development partners’ efforts can be aligned to, and thus complement central government action. On the other hand, cognizant of the reality of finite fiscal space, the Government of Guyana, with the support of relevant development partners, will be able to use the MAF Action Plan as a tool for resource mobilization in order to fill identified financing gaps. |