The Pan-African Parliament (PAP) Committee on Health, Labour and Social Affairs, continued its joint oversight mission, in partnership with the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), in Lusaka, as it received comprehensive presentations highlighting continental and national progress in reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health. The presentations were made in the context of strengthening accountability and promoting accelerated implementation of the Maputo Plan of Action 2016–2030.
Africa CDC Highlights Continental Progress and Persistent Challenges
Presenting updates on behalf of the Africa CDC, Ms. Oketch Penina Achieng reaffirmed the organisation’s commitment to reducing Africa’s maternal mortality ratio to less than 70 deaths per 100,000 live births, in line with global targets.
She noted that Africa continues to carry a disproportionate burden of maternal deaths, accounting for 69% of global maternal mortality. Severe haemorrhage, infections, and hypertensive disorders during pregnancy remain the leading causes, contributing to nearly 75% of all maternal deaths on the continent.
To accelerate progress, Africa CDC has established a Reproductive Health Unit under the Division of Disease Control and Prevention to support Member States in strengthening policies, emergency response, medicines supply chains, and community health worker capacity.
Key achievements shared include:
- Development and validation of the Africa CDC Reproductive Health Strategic Priorities 2022–2026, endorsed by 42 AU Member States and launched in 2023 at AU Headquarters.
- Translation of the strategy into all AU official languages, with implementation initiated in December 2023.
- Establishment of a continental pool of EmONC master trainers and procurement of training materials to strengthen emergency obstetric and newborn care across the continent.
- Technical support to Member States including Cameroon and Lesotho to develop national strategies on SRMNCAH&N.
- Leadership training for RH managers and continental learning visits to identify and scale best practices.
Ms. Achieng reiterated Africa CDC’s call for increased reproductive health financing, urging Member States to allocate 10–15% of their health budgets to reproductive health priorities.
Zambia Showcases Progress but Warns of Persistent Gaps
Representing the Ministry of Health Zambia, Ms. Catherine Sanka outlined the country’s strides in strengthening reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health. She reiterated that maternal and newborn health remains a national priority, with midwifery forming the backbone of the country’s response.
Zambia has recorded meaningful progress, including:
- Reduction of the Maternal Mortality Ratio from 252 to 187 per 100,000 live births.
- A decline in the total fertility rate from 4.7 (2018) to 4.0 (2024).
- High antenatal care coverage, with 98.4% of pregnant women accessing skilled ANC.
However, key challenges persist. Adolescent pregnancy remains alarmingly high, affecting 27.6% of girls aged 15–19, with the burden greatest in rural areas. Shortages and uneven distribution of midwives continue to impede service delivery, while stock-outs of critical commodities—such as magnesium sulfate and oxytocin—pose significant risks to women’s lives.
Ms. Sanka also highlighted systemic gaps, including weak referral and emergency transport systems, infrastructure limitations in EmONC services, and a heavy reliance on paper-based data systems.
To address these challenges, Zambia is undertaking a national EmONC needs assessment, scaling up respectful maternity care training, piloting a new labour care guide, and expanding community-based RMNCAH outreach models supported by partners such as UNICEF. She emphasised the government’s commitment to One Plan, One Budget, One Monitoring Framework to ensure harmonised implementation.
Pan-African Parliament Calls for Stronger Parliamentary Oversight and Sustainable Investments
The Pan-African Parliament delegation commended both presentations and underscored the role of legislators in strengthening accountability, resource allocation, and harmonisation of reproductive health policies across Africa.
The Committee highlighted the need for:
- Sustained investments in midwifery, EmONC services, and supply chain systems.
- Prioritisation of adolescent pregnancy as a high-risk national and continental emergency.
- Strengthened partnerships between PAP, Africa CDC, national parliaments, and Ministries of Health to monitor implementation of continental health frameworks, including the Maputo Plan of Action and Agenda 2063.
The oversight mission continues with field visits to health facilities, community health programmes, and stakeholder engagements aimed at assessing implementation gaps and identifying opportunities for strengthened collaboration.
