Why We are Walking

We are walking because...

It is International Day of the Midwife and one of the most appropriate days to highlight that over 340,000 women and over 5 million infants around the world die each year as a result of preventable pregnancy and childbirth complications.

The world needs midwives now more than ever. The World Health Organization,

UN agencies and other global partners have identified that midwives are the key to achieving reductions in maternal and newborn deaths and disabilities globally.

We want to demonstrate our shared commitment to tackling the issue of maternal and newborn mortality with midwives and mothers around the world. The locations and levels of maternal mortality indicate serious inequalities throughout the developing world.

We’re on the Road to Durban

The International Day of the Midwife walk on 5 May is the first leg of a walk that will finish on 18th June at the International Confederation of Midwives Congress in Durban, South Africa. http://www.midwives2011.org/

By participating at this stage, midwives and supporters are taking the vital first steps to Durban, where 3,000 midwives will meet to share their knowledge and skills about better quality care for mothers and their newborn and greater access to skilled midwifery support.

The Road to Durban walk is about ‘midwives supporting midwives’ and nations walking side by side to publicize the urgent need for better maternal and newborn health across the developing world. By finishing the walk in Durban we can also draw attention to the particular problems in Africa and the Sub-Saharan Region.