The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

Abstract #48541

Theresa Shaver, BSN, Midwife, NGO Networks for Health, 2000 M Street, N.W., Suite 500, Washington, DC 20036, 202-261-4693, tshaver@ngonetworks.org and Nancy Russell, MA, Maternal and Neonatal Health Program, 1615 Thames Street, Suite 100, Baltimore, MD 21231-3492.

In 1999, the White Ribbon Alliance for Safe Motherhood was formed in response to the global call for action to reduce maternal mortality. The Alliance is an international coalition of organizations designed to increase awareness of the need to make pregnancy and childbirth safe for all women and newborns. It was founded to build a grassroots constituency to support and complement the Safe Motherhood Initiative. To achieve this, the Alliance:

· Raises awareness of safe motherhood among citizens, international and local nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), government agencies, and community-based organizations in developing countries;

· Builds alliances to save women’s lives through broad-based partnerships among organizations and individuals representing a range of sectors such as health, education, human rights, religion, and government;

· Acts as a catalyst for action to address the tragedy of maternal deaths and expand current safe motherhood efforts.

To raise awareness, build alliances, and act as a catalyst for action the Alliance relies on its members worldwide to promote safe motherhood and raise awareness of maternal mortality among families, communities, and governments.

In India, Indonesia, and Zambia, Alliance members have formed Secretariats to more effectively mobilize their communities and countries around safe motherhood and maternal health. As a Secretariat, these members are better able to share and identify best practices and lessons learned, mobilize and receive support from their governments, international organizations, and the public and private sectors, disseminate information on maternal mortality to the media, and mobilize individuals and families to address maternal mortality in their communities.

Learning Objectives:

• At the end of this session, participants will be able to articulate the reasons for the development of the WRA and describe the development and expansion of the White Ribbon Alliance worldwide.

Keywords: Maternal Health, Community-Based Health Promotion

Related Web page: www.whiteribbonalliance.org

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.