RMNCH news 2011

Below, please find the full 2011 RMNCH news, with links to relevant websites and accompanying reports, when available

January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December

December

• WHO/WAPM/EAPM/March of Dimes: Xth World Congress on Maternal and Neonatal Health
  18-20 DECEMBER | ROME - WHO in collaboration with the World Association of Perinatal Medicine (WAPM), the European Association of Perinatal Medicine (EAPM) and March of Dimes, announces the Xth World Congress on Maternal and Neonatal Health, which will take place in Italy, Rome, from the 18th to the 20th of December 2011.
• Parliament of Uganda and the Inter-Parlimentary Union meet to address women's and children's health
  9-10 DECEMBER 2011 | KAMPALA - Approximately 80 parliamentarians gathered in a two day meeting organized by the Parliament of Uganda and the Inter-Parliamentary Union to discuss the role of parliaments in improving reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health in Uganda.
• Mobile health leaders convene at third annual summit
  The 2011 mHealth Summit kicked off with 3211 attendees from 48 countries. “Our goal this year was to deliver an event that met the needs of this growing industry,” said Richard Scarfo, Director of the mHealth Summit and Director of Strategic Alliance at the Foundation for the National Institute of Health (NIH).
• Thousands attend landmark conference on family planning in Senegal
  DAKAR, Senegal, 29 Nov. 2011 – Thousands from around the world gathered in Dakar, Senegal for the the International Conference on Family planning. As the largest meeting of its kind, its aim is to push forward an agenda for broad family planning access and support around the world.
• UN Trust Fund to End Violence Against Women: 2011 Call for Proposals
  8 DECEMBER 2011 - The United Nations Trust Fund in Support of Actions to Eliminate Violence against Women is accepting applications for its 16th grant cycle (2011) from government authorities, civil society organizations and networks.
• OHCHR Call for input: Technical guidance application of human rights based approach to maternal mortality
  7 DECEMBER 2011 - The UN Human Rights Council (HRC) on human rights and preventable maternal mortality and morbidity, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) is now seeking input to prepare technical guidance on the application of a human rights-based approach to reduce maternal mortality and morbidity.
• MNCH retreat for Kenyan Parliament
  5-6 DECEMBER 2011 | NAIROBI, KENYA - Kenyan Parliamentarians met over two days to discuss their role in improving the stagnating mortality and morbidity rates for women and children.
• Call For Abstracts—Conference : Skinship: Connecting Families, Communities and Cultures Through the Universal Language of Touch
  5 DECEMBER 2011 | QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA - Skin-to-skin contact and touch between parents and young children is now widely considered more than just a "good thing".
• HIV/AIDS Alliance notes AIDS Day

November

• Unparalleled global progress in HIV response
  30 NOVEMBER 2011 | GENEVA -- Global progress in both preventing and treating HIV emphasizes the benefits of sustaining investment in HIV/AIDS over the longer term.
• Women and children neglected in drive for equitable health for all
  29 NOVEMBER 2011 | GENEVA - Eliminating Health Inequities: Every Woman and Every Child Counts, a new report by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health (PMNCH), paints a stark picture of global health inequities.
• Commonwealth parliamentarians discuss their role in improving women’s and children’s health
  29 NOVEMBER – 2 DECEMBER 2011 | LONDON UK - Over 60 parliamentarians from 40 countries participated in a session on the role of parliaments in keeping the promises on women’s and children’s health - this at the International Parliamentary Conference on the Millennium Development Goals, hosted by the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association UK (CPA UK).
• International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women
• Canadian Network for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health launched in Ottawa
  22 NOVEMBER 2011 | OTTAWA - The Canadian Network for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health was launched during a round table meeting with Canadian health stakeholders in Ottawa.
• Global Fund Board establishes transitional funding to replace Round 11
  22 NOVEMBER 2011 - In light of current resource constraints, the Board of the Global Fund to Fight HIV, Tuberculosis (TB) and Malaria has decided to replace its next funding round –Round 11--with a Transitional Funding Mechanism.
• New report looks at effective monitoring of indicators of progress on maternal, newborn and child health
  22 NOVEMBER 2011 | OTTAWA - The Health Metrics Network, Countdown to 2015, UNICEF and the World Health Organization launched a new report which aims to help chart advances in maternal, newborn and child health in high-burden countries.
• Canada announces support to Johns Hopkins University to improve reporting of reduced child mortality in Africa
  21 NOVEMBER 2011| OTTAWA, Ontario―The Government of Canada, through the Canadian International Development Agency, is supporting phase two of the Johns Hopkins' Real-Time Results Tracking project, which will allow CIDA to track the results of its child health interventions.
• Stakeholders meet in Canada to examine delivering for women’s and children’s health
  20-22 NOVEMBER 2011 | OTTAWA - More than 100 policymakers, donors, technical advisors, academics and advocates from around the world gathered in Ottawa for a two-day meeting to advance the implementation of the workplan of the Commission on Information and Accountability for Women's and Children's Health (COIA). A key outcome is the development of a high-level action plan to implement the COIA recommendations. PMNCH will play a key role in this joint plan. Co-organized by CIDA and WHO and opened by WHO Director-General Margaret Chan and Canadian CIDA Minister Bev Oda, Ottawa was also the site for the first meeting of the Commission’s Expert Review Group (ERG).
• GAVI takes first steps to introduce vaccines against cervical cancer and rubella
  17 NOVEMBER 2011 | DHAKA – Responding to demand from developing countries, the GAVI Alliance will take the first steps towards the introduction of human papillomavirus and rubella vaccines, the GAVI Board has announced.
• March of Dimes launches Prematurity Campaign and Prematurity Day
  17 NOVEMBER 2011 | The March of Dimes has launched a Campaign to bring attention to premature babies in the United States and worldwide –and has launched a special day to mark premature births.
• Human Rights Watch new publication on accountability for maternal health care in South Africa
  AUGUST 2011 - The new Human Rights Watch report "Stop Making Excuses: Accountability for Maternal Health Care in South Africa" has been published during the summer.
• Al Jazeera reports: Uganda sued over maternal deaths
  Activists file lawsuit in court regarding cases of women who died while giving birth unattended in hospitals.
• UNSG Ban Ki-Moon tours Asia for women’s and children’s health
  12-15 NOVEMBER | BANGLADESH, THAILAND, INDONESIA - On Saturday, 12 November 2011, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-Moon started a three-country visit to Asia to Bangladesh, Thailand and Indonesia.
• mHealth Alliance Webinar seeks strategy and programming input
• GAPPS: New Preventing Preterm Birth Initiative
  10 NOVEMBER 2011 - The Global Alliance to Prevent Prematurity and Stillbirth (GAPPS) is now accepting letters of inquiry for a new grant program, the Preventing Preterm Birth initiative (PPB).
• PMNCH Members mark World Pneumonia Day
  12 NOVEMBER 2011 – More than 1.5 million children die every year from pneumonia, more than from any other disease. But a million children’s lives a year could be saved by simple interventions
• ABC News and the UN Foundation launch "Million Moms Challenge"
  19 SEPTEMBER 2011 | NEW YORK, N.Y. — ABC News and the UN Foundation have launched an initiative engaging millions of Americans to support millions of moms across the globe around the critical issues of pregnancy, childbirth and children's health
• Roundtable: "Policies for Promoting the Private Sector's Role in Development"
  8 NOVEMBER 2011 | BRUSSELS - The high-level roundtable debate brings together some 30 senior stakeholders from the private sector, civil society as well as from European and international institutions to discuss the changing landscape of Europe’s cooperation, and the private sector role in that landscape.
• PMNCH Members mark 7 billion inhabitants
  NOVEMBER 2011 – Dozens of PMNCH members have marked a new population landmark as it is estimated that since 31 October, 7 billion people now inhabit the world.

October

• UNFPA’s State of World Population & “World at 7 Billion Campaign”
  13 SEPTEMBER - By the close of 2011, the global population will have reached 7 billion. A world of 7 billion people is a distinctive moment in human history, which represents both an achievement as well as an unprecedented challenge for the future of the planet and its inhabitants.
• World Polio Day 2011
  25 OCTOBER 2011 - Thanks to two decades of collective action, the international community is on the brink of eradicating polio.
• Speakers of African Parliament commit to support maternal, newborn and child health
  24 OCTOBER 2011 | JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA - African Speakers of Parliaments and Presidents of Senate have unanimously adopted a landmark resolution on a Declaration of Commitment to prioritize parliamentary support for increased policy and budget action on Maternal, Newborn and Child Health in African countries.
• Parliamentarians speak out on women’s and children’s health
  18 OCTOBER 2011 | BERN - Women’s and children’s health was a leading item on the agenda of the 125th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) in Bern, Switzerland.
• African Parliaments and Speakers endorse resolution on increased budgetary support to maternal, newborn and child health
  17 OCTOBER 2011 | NAIROBI - The legislative arm of the African Union, the Pan African Parliament (PAP), has adopted a broad resolution urging speakers of Parliament in the continent to prioritize the implementation of maternal, newborn and child health programs and calls on high-level parliamentary action to accelerate implementation of a plan on policy and budget support to do so.
• Southern Vaccine Advocacy Challenge (SVAC)
  OCTOBER 2011 - Over the past year, the Public and Political Support Working Group of the Decade of Vaccines Collaboration has been working to develop models of best practices to strengthen support for vaccines and their financing.
• First International Forum "Ways to reduce Infant Mortality: the Russian Experience in Moscow, 11-13 October
  11-13 OCTOBER | MOSCOW – The Global Strategy on Women’s and Children’s Health and coordinating the Millennium Development Goals through partnership were highlighted at a recent event held in Moscow: “The first international Forum: Ways to Reduce infant mortality: the Russian Experience”.
• ONE Campaign calls on G-20 leaders to address a new F word -- Famine
  4 OCTOBER 2011 | Rock star Bono is calling the Famine in the Horn of Africa “the most offensive F word” in a new ONE campaign and petition, calling on world leaders to act at November’s G20 Summit to save hundreds of thousands of lives in the Horn of Africa—and end the cycle of famine.

September

• Plan Canada recruits
  SEPTEMBER 2011 - Plan Canada is looking for Gender and Maternal Child Health Specialists
• Concern Worldwide is hiring!
  SEPTEMBER 2011 - Concern Worldwide is currently seeking outstanding individuals to fill the vacant positions advertised on their web site:
• First Ladies & Health Ministers Forum: Developing Your Action Plan for Women’s Health
  22 SEPTEMBER - Hosted by Princess of Africa Foundation, International Development Strategies, Vestergaard Frandsen and Women Deliver with Merck Inc. will co-host
• Innovating for Every Woman, Every Child
  21 SEPTEMBER - The meeting aligns with the launch of the Report “Innovating for Women and Children”, as part of the Global Campaign on Health MDGs.
• High Level Colloquium for Women as Agents of Change in the Global Fight Against Poverty
  21 SEPTEMBER - High-level meeting
• The Role of the Private Sector in Addressing the Global Non-Communicable Disease Challenge
  21 SEPTEMBER - Meeting hosted by Hosted by GBC Health & FSG
• The Best Start - Saving Children's Lives in Their First 1,000 Days
  21 SEPTEMBER - Launch of World Vision’s latest report “The Best Start” and the world premier of a photo exhibit by World Press Photo winner, Nick Danziger, on the realities of MDG issues from 2005 to today.
• Innovating for Every Woman, Every Child
  21 SEPTEMBER - The meeting aligns with the launch of the Report “Innovating for Women and Children”, as part of the Global Campaign on Health MDGs.
• World Vision: The Best Start - Saving Children Lives in their First Thousand Days
  21 SEPTEMBER 2011 - This report draws on positive experiences in World Vision programmes and beyond to demonstrate how positive nutrition outcomes for mothers and children can be delivered at the community level.
• Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) 2011 Annual Meeting
  20-22 SEPTEMBER 2011 - The Clinton Global Initiative’s Annual Meeting brings together heads of state, government and business leaders, scholars, and NGO directors.
• Maternal Health in Crisis: Health Workers on the Frontline
  20 SEPTEMBER - NCD High-level side event; hosted by Family Care International, Save the Children, Jhpiego, ICM, Merck, The Lancet & Every Mother Counts.
• Under- and over-nutrition
  20 SEPTEMBER - NCD High-level side event
• HIV, NCDs & Health Systems
  20 SEPTEMBER - NCD HLM side event; hosted by UNAIDS & WHO
• High Level Education Roundtable
  21 SEPTEMBER 2011 - Meeting organized by MacArthur Foundation, Pearson Institute, MasterCard Foundation, Hewlett Foundation, UNESCO & U.S. National Commission for UNESCO
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• Saving the Lives of 16 Million: September 2011 Update
  20 SEPTEMBER 2011 - Every Woman Every Child is a collective effort to save the lives of millions of women and children, and accelerate progress towards the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
• UN Human Rights Council urges action in new 2011 Resolution on Preventable Maternal Mortality and Morbidity
  20 SEPTEMBER 2011 | GENEVA - In a resolution (A/HRC/18/L.8) regarding preventable maternal mortality and morbidity and human rights, as orally amended adopted without a vote, the United Nations Human Rights Council encourages States and other relevant stakeholders to take action at all levels to address the interlinked root causes of maternal mortality and morbidity
• Human Rights Council side event on preventable maternal mortality
  14 SEPTEMBER 2011 — The Permanent Missions of New Zealand, Burkina Faso and Colombia organized a high-level side event during the 18th session of the UN Human Rights Council, on "Applying the human rights-based approach to efforts to eliminate preventable maternal mortality and morbidity."
• 2nd Annual Social Good Summit (& Digital Media Lounge)
  19-22 SEPTEMBER - 92Y, Mashable and UN Foundation partnership will bring together world leaders and high profile advocates to discuss how we harness new media to help solve global issues.
• High-Level meeting of the GA on the Prevention and Control of NCDs
  19-20 SEPTEMBER - The General Assembly in its resolution A/RES/65/238, decided that a high-level meeting of the General Assembly on the prevention and control of non-communicable diseases shall be held in September 2011 in New York.
• White Ribbon Alliance Wake Up Breakfast
  19 SEPTEMBER - Kicking off an important week of global conversations White Ribbon Alliance for Safe Motherhood will bring together Sarah Brown, Arianna Huffington and Donna Karan to host a breakfast highlighting moms, newborns and frontline health workers
• Women: Inspiration and Enterprise Symposium (WIE Symposium)
  19 SEPTEMBER 2011 - Co hosted by Sarah Brown, Arianna Huffington and Donna Karan the WIE Symposium is a modern, dynamic conference bringing together women and men from a wide spectrum of industries.
• Women Connect for Health & Education
  19 SEPTEMBER - First Ladies official side event of NCD HLM, sponsored by Advanced Development for Africa, Digital He@lt Initiative, Global Network Women in ICT (WITNET), South-South News, GSMA mWomen.
• CEO Symposium on Digital Health for Digital Development
  19 - SEPTEMBER A side event of NCD High-Level Meeting (HLM) has the theme of “Connecting the MDGs & NCDs in 2011”.
• Integrating NCDs: the Next Frontier in Women’s Health
  19 SEPTEMBER - PMNCH is co-hosting a side event with the American Cancer Society, the GAVI Alliance, PATH, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the World Heart Federation on Monday, September 19th.
• Evening with the Global Leaders Council for Reproductive Health
  19 SEPTEMBER - The Global Leaders Council for Reproductive Health is an unprecedented effort to increase momentum at the highest political levels for improved reproductive health.
• South-South Awards 2011: Digital Health for Digital Development
  19 SEPTEMBER - In 2011, the South-South Awards will honor governments, organizations, and individuals, who have succeeded in scaling-up and replicating the implementation of the health-related Millennium Development Goals and beyond at the national level.
• High-Level Reception to Celebrate the Achievements of the UN Decade to Roll Back Malaria
  19 SEPTEMBER - UN Deputy Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the Roll Back Malaria Partnership will co-host.
• Save the Children: No Child Out of Reach
  19 SEPTEMBER 2011 - Save the Children’s latest report, No Child Out Of Reach, which calls for immediate action to end the global health worker crisis.
• Integrating NCDs - The Next Frontier in Women's Health
  New York, 19 September 2011 – Government, UN and civil society leaders today called for a new approach to women’s healthcare to address the devastating impact of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular and chronic respiratory diseases in low and middle-income countries. Today, more than half of all female deaths in low and middle income countries are caused by NCDs.
• ew WHO study details low-cost solutions to curb tide on NCDs
  16 SEPTEMBER | NEW YORK/GENEVA -- A new World Health Organization (WHO) study reveals that low income countries could introduce a core set of strategies to prevent and treat cancer, heart disease, diabetes and lung disease for just US$1.20 per person per year.
• UNF Press Fellowship
  18-21 SEPTEMBER 2011 - Some 20 U.S.-based journalists, focused on global health, will include access to the Social Good Summit
• Global Strategy for Women’s and Children’s Health: Expanding community-level access to midwifery services
  18 SEPTEMBER - High-Level meeting & technical discussions on Sept 19
• Tackling NCDs: How Can Existing Platforms be Leveraged?
  18 SEPTEMBER - This event examined how well-established service delivery platforms, such as those for HIV/AIDS and maternal and child health, can be adapted to increase the health system's ability to also address the growing challenge of NCDs (noncommunicable diseases), particularly in low-income countries.
• Scaling up action to curb NCDs: How much will it cost & what is cost of inaction?
  18 SEPTEMBER - Release of WHO & WEF NCD Economic Reports
• IHME releases new child and maternal mortality figures
• From Advocacy to Action: NCD Alliance NGO Briefing for the UN HLM on NCDs
  17 SEPTEMBER - This event will brief NGOs on strategies for influencing and negotiating at the HLM to have the greatest impact,
• MDG Gap Taskforce Report
  15 SEPTEMBER - With less than four years left until the 2015 deadline to deliver on the commitments contained in the MDGs, the 2011 Report provides recommendations to all major stakeholders on how to address the remaining implementation gaps.
• New report shows better results when linking nutrition, health, and water/sanitation for world’s poorest
  14 SEPTEMBER 2011 | NEW YORK - As governments prepare to gather at the United Nations General Assembly in New York on September 19 and 20, a new report published by a group of six influential aid agencies provides clear and compelling evidence that a combined approach to tackling poverty and disease achieves better results for the world’s poorest.
• Campaign: Women for a Healthy Future
  14 SEPTEMBER - Women Deliver is a founding partner of a new initiative, "Women for a Healthy Future," started by Arogya World, to mobilize women from around the world to ignite action against noncommunicable diseases (NCDs).
• WHO report maps noncommunicable disease trends in all countries
  14 SEPTEMBER | GENEVA - A new World Health Organization (WHO) report features information about the noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) situation in 193 countries, as global leaders prepare to meet at the United Nations high-level meeting on noncommunicable diseases in New York, 19-20 September 2011.
• Malaria & Women’s and Children’s Health meeting
  13-14 SEPTEMBER 2011 - The meeting focused on NCDs, HPV, malaria, and women’s and children’s health,
• United Nations High-Level Summit on Non-Communicable Diseases
  SEPTEMBER 2011 | NEW YORK - Women and children’s health was given high priority in several key events held in association with this year’s United Nations General Assembly and High Level Meeting on Noncommunicable Disease Preventions and Control, held in the second half of this month in New York
• WHO studies link education and mortality; increased risks of inducing labour
  1 SEPTEMBER - The WHO Global Survey on Maternal and Perinatal Health shows that lower levels of maternal education are associated with higher maternal mortality; this study compared the outcomes of elective induction versus spontaneous onset of labour in almost 40 000 deliveries in Latin American women with low-risk pregnancies.

August

• DALIT: Bangladesh floods
  AUGUST 2011 | SATHKHIRA, BANGLADESH - About 150 villages of 12 unions under Tala upazila of Satkhira district have been submerged as rain-fed and saline water from the Kapotakka River entered the whole area since July 21, overflowing the banks of the silted river.
• Newborn deaths decrease but account for higher share of global child deaths
  30 AUGUST 2011 | GENEVA/WASHINGTON — Fewer newborns are dying worldwide, but progress is too slow and Africa particularly is being left further behind.
• UNFPA Executive Director pledges financial support to Bangladesh
  DHAKA, Bangladesh – UNFPA Executive Director Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin pledged that the Fund will work to raise $70 million to support the country's next five-year (2012-16) plan to improve maternal and reproductive health and tackle violence against women.
• Heeding the Call: A Tunisian Midwife Becomes a Humanitarian Worker
  CHOUCHA CAMP, Tunisia — As widespread unrest shook Libya in early March 2011, around 1,000 people per hour were crossing the border into Tunisia. T
• Petition targets noncommunicable diseases in “Women for a Healthy Future” campaign
  AUGUST 2011 - Arogya World (www.arogyaworld.org) is mobilizing women from around the world to ignite action against noncommunicable diseases (NCDs).
• Innovating to improve women and children’s health
  12 SEPTEMBER 2011 | LONDON - For less than $100, poor, pregnant women in India can now give birth in a private hospital focusing on low-income families, with comparable quality to expensive, private ones. This is an alternative to overcrowded, poorly staffed government-funded hospitals.
• Global Fund Round 11 Call for Proposals
  AUGUST 2011 | GENEVA – The Global Fund Round 11 Call for Proposals is now open, with a submission date of 15 December 2011. Women and children bear a heavy burden of HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis (TB) and malaria, which interact with and exacerbate other reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health (RMNCH) problems.
• Using ICT to deliver a healthier tomorrow for Africa
  9-11 AUGUST 2011 | ABUJA, NIGERIA – The Nigerian Ministry of Health and Intel Corporation, in collaboration with PMNCH, have brought together regional governments, healthcares providers, donor bodies, technology companies, healthcare practitioners and healthcare policymakers.
• WHO Vaccination campaign saving children in the Horn of Africa
  05 AUGUST 2011 -- The Horn of Africa is facing its worst drought in over 50 years; child malnutrition rates are already high and are expected to rise.
• A mobile phone, checklist solution to empower women and save lives
  The Mother Baby 7 Day mCheck Tool empowers women and their families to identify and seek care for 12 crucial danger signs in mothers and their newborns
• Millions to innovation proposals to save mothers and children at birth
  2 AUGUST 2011 – About $ US 14 million has been awarded to innovations aimed at saving the lives of mothers and children around the world—with several PMNCH members among the finalists: Jhpiego, Johns Hopkins University, Moi University, Population Council and the World Health Organization.
• World Breastfeding Week (WBW) 2011
  1-7 AUGUST 2011 - From 1-7 August 2011, the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action (WABA), and breastfeeding advocates in more than 170 countries worldwide will be celebrating World Breastfeeding Week (WBW)

July

• Saving Lives at Birth: Vote for innovative MNCH project by 27 July!
  JULY 2011 - Saving Lives at Birth: A Grand Challenge for Development, submitted a call to the global community for innovative prevention and treatment approaches that will benefit pregnant women and newborns in rural, low resource settings around the time of birth.
• Health Workers Count
  JULY-SEPTEMBER 2011 - A coalition of organizations including PMNCH members such as Save the Children, White Ribbon Alliance and others are calling all advocates to take action and sign a petition for increased support to health workers before the UN’s review of MDGs in September.
• Uganda announces elimination of maternal and neonatal tetanus
  26 JULY 2011 | Kampala, Uganda – Earlier this month Uganda announced that it had eliminated maternal and neonatal tetanus (MNT). The country is the 20th to do so since 2000, largely thanks to the Maternal and Neonatal Tetanus Elimination campaign which launched in Uganda in 2002.
• Horn of Africa Crisis
  21 July 2011 – PMNCH Partners have sprung into action in response to the growing crisis in East Africa, rallying efforts to help women and children survive one of the region’s worst droughts in 60 years.
• One.org calls on world leaders to provide UN funding to help people in Horn of Africa
  Please urgently provide the full funding that the UN has identified as necessary to help people in the Horn of Africa, and please keep your promises to deliver the long term solutions which could prevent crises like this happening again.
• Merck Signature Initiative holds expert meeting in Geneva
  13 JULY 2011 | GENEVA - A group of health experts met with members of the private sector to examine the role of the private sector – and in particular Merck’s “Signature Initiative to Reduce Maternal Mortality — in helping to improve women’s and children’s health.
• GAVI Civil Society announces new Board members
  JULY 2011 | GENEVA - The GAVI CSO Steering Committee has announced that Joan Awunyo-Akaba, PhD, has become the Board Alternate representing civil society on the GAVI Alliance Board.
• Obstetric anaesthetic information for mothers online in 38 languages
  July 2011 - The Obstetric Anaesthetists' Association has been committed to providing high quality information for mothers about all aspects of obstetric anaesthesia. The information is available online in 38 languages. And is now accessible with the OAA mobile web ‘app’ for Smartphone and iPads
• Merck holds expert consultations to develop maternal initiative
  12-13 JULY 2011 | NEW YORK, GENEVA - Health experts met with Merck to examine the role of the private sector in helping to reduce maternal mortality and improve women’s and children’s health.
• 2011 UN Report on Millennium Development Goals
  7 JULY 2011 | GENEVA - Significant strides have been made towards the Millennium Development Goals, yet reaching all the goals by the 2015 deadline remains challenging, as the world's poorest are being left behind.

June

• Morocco Forum on Maternal Mortality
  29 JUNE – 1 JULY 2011 | RABAT, MOROCCO - The Moroccan Ministry of Health hosted an international forum on maternal mortality in Rabat, from 29 June to 1 July.
• UNFPA’s Purnima Mane announced as new president/CEO of Pathfinder
  27 JUNE 2011 – PMNCH member Pathfinder International, a global leader in sexual and reproductive health, has chosen Dr Purnima Mane (current Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations and Deputy Executive Director of UNFPA) as its next president and CEO, effective January 2012.
• ICM 2011: New president sworn in
  23 JUNE 2011 – Frances Day-Stirk, Director of Learning Research and Practice Development at the Royal College of Midwives in London, UK, has taken over the top position at the International Confederation of Midwives (ICM).
• Pacific Health Summit: WHO Director General stresses strengthening health systems
  21-23 JUNE 2011| SEATTLE, USA - Decision-makers in business, medicine, public health, and public policy gathered to discuss the profound impact and promise of vaccines at the 2011 Pacific Health Summit.
• UN Secretary-General appointed for second term
  21 JUNE 2011 | NEW YORK - Ban Ki-moon, born in the Republic of Korea on 13 June 1944, is the eighth Secretary-General of the United Nations.
• Triennial Congress of the International Confederation of Midwives (ICM)
  19-23 JUNE | DURBAN, SOUTH AFRICA - Thousands of midwives from some 111 countries gathered for the ICM Triennial Congress and launch the first-ever State of the World’s Midwifery Report 2011: Delivering Health, Saving Lives.
• State of the World’s Midwifery Report 2011: Delivering Health, Saving Lives
  20 JUNE 2011 | DURBAN, SOUTH AFRICA - The first report to explore the state of midwifery practices across the globe, entitled the State of the World’s Midwifery 2011: Delivering Health, Saving Lives, is being launched on 20 June in Durban, South Africa.
• Commission on Information and Accountability for Women’s and Children’s Health
  JANUARY – MAY 2011 - A high-level commission to improve global reporting, oversight and accountability for women's and children’s health – the Commission on Information and Accountability for Women’s and Children’s Health – was established in January 2011.
• GAVI Alliance pledging conference exceeds goal by US$ 600 million
  13 JUNE 2011 | LONDON, ENGLAND – Major public and private donors have committed funding to immunize more than 250 million of the world’s poorest children against life-threatening diseases by 2015 and prevent more than four million premature deaths.
• Save the Children invites organizations to join an urgent call for more health workers
  13 JUNE 2011 –Save the Children has launched a micro website on behalf of an alliance calling for more health workers.
• UN Summit on HIV/AIDS adopts ambitious targets and focus on women and children
  10 JUNE 2011 | UNITED NATIONS New York - More than 3000 people came together at the United Nations in New York for the UN General Assembly High Level Meeting on AIDS to take stock of the progress and challenges of the last 30 years and shape the future AIDS response.
• Save the Children campaigns to save 4 million in 4 hours
  JUNE 2011 – As part of their “No Child Born to Die” campaign, Save the Children is asking world leaders to help save 4 million lives in 4 hours at the global vaccines summit on 13 June 2011 in London, England
• Japan meeting keeps momentum going on MDGs
  8 JUNE 2011 | TOKYO, JAPAN – The Government of Japan welcomed world leaders to Tokyo to discuss and review progress made toward achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) since the United Nations MDGs Summit in September.
• Marie Stopes International reports on global impact for 2010
  2 JUNE 2011 | LONDON, ENGLAND – Marie Stopes International (MSI) has released the results of its 2010 'Global Impact Report'.
• Opportunity in crisis: Preventing HIV from early adolescence to young adulthood
  1 JUNE 2011 - This report provides an overview of the State of the epidemic among young people. It includes individual testimonies, the latest statistics and analysis on very young adolescents (10-14), older adolescents (15-19), young adults (20-24) and young people living with HIV.
• India’s MoH launches initiative to finance instutional deliveries
  1 JUNE 2011 - The UPA Chairperson Smt Sonia Gandhi today launched the national initiative of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India – the Janani –Shishu Suraksha Karyakram (JSSK).

May

• IDF & NCD Alliance: Consultation on non-communicable diseases
  MAY 2011 – the International Diabetes Federation and the NCD Alliance are calling on their member associations, partners, colleagues and individuals to take part in an on-line consultation.
• Siemens recognizes a need to broaden understanding of healthcare needs in Africa
  MAY 2011 | GENEVA - As an established market leader Siemens recognizes the urgent need to improve the medical care of women and children in the developing countries
• MNCH members join other CSOs in recommending ways to support equity in the Global Strategy
  MAY 2011 – Action Canada for Population and Development, International Planned Parenthood Federation and Ipas joined other civil society organizations in writing a response to the UN Commission on Information and Accountability’s report.
• GAVI Civil Society Constituency calls on donors
  MAY 2011 | GAVI CIVIL Society Constituency Call to Action - “We strongly support GAVI’s 2011-2015 Strategy to further expand access to basic vaccines and catalyse the rapid introduction of newer vaccines ...
• Canada announces new MNCH initiatives
  27 MAY 2011 | Deauville, France - Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper today announced support for new health initiatives to help save the lives of mothers and children in Africa and Asia as part of the Canadian-led Muskoka Initiative launched at the G-8 Summit in June 2010.
• G8 Watch 2011
  26 MAY 2011 | DEAUVILLE, FRANCE - World leaders of the Group of Eight – known as the G8 – have gathered in northern France for the annual Summit of Heads of State.
• Maternal health in the spotlight during UN chief’s four-nation trip
  26 MAY 2011 – Maternal health has been the focus of Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s four-nation trip this week to Côte d’Ivoire, Nigeria, Ethiopia and France.
• “Saving children’s lives" - GAVI Alliance pledging conference
  MAY 2011 | GENEVA - A pledging conference entitled “Saving children’s lives” for GAVI Alliance partners, GAVI donors, co-financing countries and vaccine manufacturers will assemble on 13 June 2011 in London.
• Model developed to improve combination vaccine accessibility worldwide
  MAY 2011 – A researcher at Rochester Institute of Technology has developed a mathematical approach that could make complex combination vaccines more affordable for developing countries and financially more attractive to vaccine producers, helping address a major obstacle to reaching global MNCH targets.
• Rotary Foundation, Aga Khan University unite to improve maternal health
  MAY 2011 – Improved maternal and child health in East Africa is the goal of a new strategic partnership between PMNCH members Rotary International and Aga Khan University (AKU).
• Health Accountability Report presented at World Health Assembly
  19 MAY 2011 | GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – The United Nations Commission on Information and Accountability for Women’s and Children’s Health presented their report, Keeping Promises, Measuring Results, and recommendations to increase the likelihood that pledges for women's and children's health are honoured and that resources are spent in the most effective way to save lives.
• Deauville G8 Accountability Report
  18 MAY 2011 | DEAUVILLE, France – The Group of Eight (G8) has released the Deauville Accountability Report – G8 Commitments on Health and Food Security: State of Delivery and Results.
• MDGs and NCDs front and centre at 64th World Health Assembly
  16-21 MAY 2011 | GENEVA, Switzerland — The Millennium Development Goals and Non-Communicable Diseases are key themes at the Sixty-fourth World Health Assembly.
• WHO 2011 Statistics Report released with new statistics website
  13 MAY | 2011 GENEVA -- An increasing number of countries are facing a double burden of disease as the prevalence of risk factors for chronic diseases increase and many countries still struggle to reduce maternal and child deaths caused by infectious diseases.
• International Day of the Midwife 2011
  5 MAY 2011 | More than 22,000 people in 31 countries are marching for midwifery to commemorate International Day of the Midwife this year.
• WHO Regional Director for Africa calls for greater emphasis on MNCH in West African countries
  5 MAY 2011 | LOME, TOGO – The WHO Regional Director for Africa Dr Luis Gomes Sambo put women and children’s health in the spotlight at the 12th Ordinary Meeting of the Assembly of ECOWAS Health Ministers.
• Mothers' day 2011
  MAY 2011 - Mothers all over the world are honoured and celebrated every year throughout the months of March, April and May for all that they do to ensure the health and well-being of their children.
• USAID: MAMA - New mobile health partnership launched to save lives at birth
  3 MAY 2011 | WASHINGTON, DC — US Attorney General Hillary Clinton has announced a new public-private partnership to improve women’s access to healthcare in the developing world through the use of mobile health technology.
• Save the Children: State of the World's Mothers 2011 Report
  3 MAY 2011 — Released just in time for Mothers’ Day in North America, Save the Children's 12th annual “State of the World's Mothers” report makes the case that US investment in basic health care for the world’s mothers and children impacts America’s own national interests.
• USAID announces shift in gender programming, organizational structure
  2 MAY 2011 — USAID has announced a strengthening of its gender programming and organizational structure to meet the objectives of its new policy on gender equality and women's empowerment and created an Office of Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment.

April

• ONE Campaign launches new vaccines Public Service Announcement (PSA)
  APRIL 2011 - Childhood vaccines are one of the most cost-effective ways to save lives and prevent disease for a lifetime.
• Women and children to benefit from new recommendations to improve health accountability
  DAR ES SALAAM, TANZANIA, 2 May 2011 – New recommendations calling for an unprecedented level of accountability to save the lives of more women and children in developing countries were agreed today by the United Nations Commission on Information and Accountability for Women’s and Children’s Health.
• Highlight your commitment to the Global Strategy
  APRIL 2011 | The Global Strategy for Women’s and Children’s Health is highlighting commitments to the Global Strategy on its website—and is urging all those who have made commitments to join in with on-line highlights of commitments.
• LSHTM : Seeking new collaborators to join the WOMAN Trial: an international effort to reduce maternal mortality
  APRIL 2011 - Doctors with an interest in maternal health are invited to join the WOMAN Trial, a randomised controlled trial assessing the effects of tranexamic acid on death, hysterectomy and other relevant outcomes in women with postpartum haemorrhage (PPH).
• United Nations Millennium Campaign honours women keeping moms & babies safe
  APRIL 2011 — The Millennium Campaign released the winners of its “Women Make it Happen” competition this month. The organization was flooded with compelling personal stories of women empowering themselves and others to educate, to keep mothers and babies safe and healthy, to protect the children, earn a decent living and to stand up for their rights.
• UNICEF Report: A continuum of care for adolescent girls in South Asia: defining the issues, synthesizing evidence, and working towards a policy agenda
  APRIL 2011 - This paper attempts to offer a foundation for government and development partners to begin routinely monitoring the conditions of adolescent girls and developing adolescent-friendly health policies in South Asia.
• WHO report: Deaths from noncommunicable diseases rise, hitting developing world hard
  27 APRIL 2011 | MOSCOW -- Noncommunicable diseases are the leading killer today and are on the increase, the first World Health Organization (WHO) Global Status Report on Noncommunicable Diseases (NCDs) launched today confirms .
• 124th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU)
  16 APRIL 2011 | PANAMA CITY - Parliamentarians from around the world at the 124th IPU Assembly were told they could make an important difference in the health of women and children –this message from both the Executive Director of UN Women, Ms Michelle Bachelet and PMNCH Director, Dr Carole Presern.
• WHO: 2.6 million babies stillborn in 2009
  GENEVA | 14 April 2011 - Some 2.6 million stillbirths occurred worldwide in 2009, according to the first comprehensive set of estimates published today in a special series of The Lancet medical journal.
• LANCET, PMNCH & partners - stillbirth burden high and invisible
  14 APRIL 2011 | LONDON, GENEVA - Some 2.6 million third trimester stillbirths occur worldwide every year according to the first comprehensive set of estimates published in a special series in The Lancet which was authored by 69 experts from more than 50 organizations including PMNCH.
• Make Women Matter campaign inviting the world to come together to improve maternal health by 2015
  APRIL 2011 - Every day, an alarming number of communities are losing mothers, wives, daughters, sisters and friends. Most of these deaths are preventable; all that's needed is access to family planning and high quality healthcare.
• Success of Child Growth Standards
  11 April 2011 -- Over 140 countries have adopted the WHO Child Growth Standards that were launched in 2006.
• CPD44 stresses reproductive health as key to healthier, wealthier societies
  UNITED NATIONS, New York, 11-15 April 2011 — The relationship between high-fertility, high maternal and child mortality and high incidence of extreme poverty was underlined at the 44th session of the Commission on Population and Development, which addressed the theme of “fertility, reproductive health and development.”
• World Health Day 2011: Combating drug resistance and its global spread
  7 April 2011 — Antimicrobial resistance is not a new problem but one that is becoming more dangerous. For World Health Day 2011, WHO introduced a six-point policy package to combat the rising threat of drug resistance.
• UNICEF and European Parliament launch "Alliance for Children"
  BRUSSELS, Belgium | 6 April 2011 — The European Parliament has launched a new "Alliance for Children" in partnership with UNICEF and other PMNCH members including Save the Children, Plan International and World Vision.
• Living Proof: ONE campaign showcasing progress in development
  4 APRIL 2011 | PARIS, France — At a crucial moment before France hosts the G8/ G20, PMNCH partner organizations — the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and ONE — launched Living Proof, a campaign that aims to change perceptions about aid.
• Health heroes
  APRIL 2011 - Action For Global Health has launched the Health Heroes campaign to call attention to the experiences of peer educators, community counsellors, health workers and government officials

March

• Al Jazeera Special Series: Birthrights — exploring maternal health and the power, politics and poverty impacting this issue around the world
  7 MARCH - 28 APRIL 2011 - Al Jazeera is airing eight documentaries to shed light on maternal health problems such as obstetric fistula, plus the effects of power, politics and poverty on this serious global issue.
• Saving Lives at Birth - Grand Challenge for Development: Call for proposals
  MARCH 2011 - A new partnership – Saving Lives at Birth – is accepting grant proposals for groundbreaking, innovations and treatment approaches for pregnant women and newborns at the time of birth in rural, low-resource areas.
• PMNCH Partners respond to crises in Japan and Libya
  24 MARCH 2011 - With emergency humanitarian situations in both Libya and Japan, PMNCH Partners have reached out, offering medical and humanitarian support as well as expertise in maternal, newborn and child health.
• UNFPA new report: Links Contraceptives to Human Rights
  23 MARCH 2011 – A new publication linking the right to contraceptives to the human rights framework has been launched by UNFPA and the Center for Reproductive Rights.
• WHO defines top 30 medicines to save mothers and children
  21 MARCH 2011 | GENEVA - The World Health Organization's (WHO) first ever list of priority medicines for maternal and child health recommends to countries which medicines are most important for saving lives.
• African Union Ministers and UN Commission adopt resolution on health
  21 MARCH 2011 | ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA - The 4th Joint Annual Meeting of the African Union Conference of Ministers of Economy and Finance and United Nations Economic Commission for Africa Conference of Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic development, held in Addis Ababa from 24-29 March 2011 adopted a resolution on health financing.
• New global partnership to save lives at birth
  9 MARCH 2011 - PMNCH Partners USAID, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the World Bank have launched a new partnership with the Government of Norway and Grand Challenges Canada to seek innovative solutions to reduce maternal and newborn mortality in developing countries.
• Celebrating 100 years of International Women's Day
  8 MARCH 2011 - This year marks the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day. Here is how some of the PMNCH partners have been commemorating this historic milestone.
• WRA highlights safe motherhood on 100th International Women’s Day
  8 MARCH 2011 – To mark the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day (IWD), the White Ribbon Alliance for Safe Motherhood (WRA) inspired women and men around the world to raise awareness and funds for maternal health.
• UN Women + NCDs report and maternal mortality featured at UN Women' Committee
  22 FEBRUARY - 4 MARCH 2011 - The United Nations celebrated the official launch of its newest organization, UN Women, during the fifty-fifth session of the Commission on the Status of Women in New York.
• Women Deliver list honours top 100 delivering for women & girls
  2 MARCH 2011 – In the run up to the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day, Women Deliver called for women and men around the world to nominate people who have contributed the most to girls and women throughout the past 100 years.

February

• State of World Population 2010 - From conflict and crisis to renewal
  FEBRUARY 2011 | NEW YORK - “Conflict today is less about soldiers engaging in battle with soldiers on the other side of a national border and more about combatants struggling for control within a single country and employing any means to break the will of civilians—women, girls, men and boys—by disempowering them physically, psychologically, economically, and socially.
• UNICEF: The State of the World’s Children 2011: Adolescence – An age of opportunity
  25 FEBRUARY | NEW YORK - Of 1.2 billion adolescents worldwide, more than a billion – 9 out of 10 – live in developing countries.
• EDEM Children Foundation: African Women’s Sexual and Reproductive Rights Day marked
  4 FEBRUARY 2011 - Edem Children Foundation (ECF) and Green Concern for Development (GREENCODE) have marked African Women’s Sexual & Reproductive Rights Day, 2011.
• 2011 Top stories

January

• Pledges alone not enough to improve health of women and children – UN chief
  26 JANUARY 2011 | GENEVA – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today stressed the importance of tracking the resources pledged for improving the health of women and children with the results they are intended to achieve, stating that accountability is vital to saving more lives.
• First meeting of Accountability Commission on Women’s and Children’s Health
  26 JANUARY 2011 | GENEVA – High-level Chairs and Commissioners of the new Information and Accountability Commission on Women’s and Children’s Health have convened for their first meeting at WHO.
• Women Deliver: Who Do You Think Delivers for Women?
  20 JANUARY + 8 MARCH 2011 - As we approach the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day (8 March 2011), we want to put a spotlight on the "Women Deliver 100: the most inspiring individuals delivering for women."
• London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine/Institute of Child Health : Towards 4+5
  JANUARY 2011 - “Towards 4+5” has created a searchable database of more than 90 interventions for maternal and newborn health.
• WHO Executive Board passes resolution on MDG 4 &5 accountability
  19 JANUARY 2011 | GENEVA - The WHO Executive Board (EB) has adopted a resolution regarding the follow-up to the high-level plenary meeting of the United Nations on the review of the Millennium Development Goals.
• PMNCH and partners release: State of the World’s Midwifery Report expected in June
  JANUARY | GENEVA-NEW YORK – Partners including PMNCH are collaborating to research and produce the first-ever report entitled "The State of the World’s Midwifery", expected to be released at the Triennial Congress of the International Confederation of Midwives on 20 June 2011 in Durban, South Africa.
• Saving Newborn Lives: 3.6 million newborn deaths
  JANUARY 2011 - What is progressing and what is not?
• Saving Newborn Lives: Nigeria’s newborn death toll highest in Africa
  12 JANUARY 2011 | ABUJA, NIGERIA – Every year 241,000 babies die in the first month of life in Nigeria making it the African country with the highest newborn death toll, a new Ministry of Health report, Saving Newborn Lives in Nigeria.
• Global Health & Innovation Conference: Call for presentations/early registration
  10 JANUARY 2011 | NEW HAVEN USA – Conference organizers for “Global Health & Innovation Conference” are urging early registration before 31 January
• DFID launches “Framework for Results”
  1 JANUARY 2011 | LONDON - The British Government unveiled a landmark plan on 31 December 31 2010 for improving reproductive, maternal and newborn health that could save thousands and impact millions of lives worldwide.