Carter Center Joins Qatar Fund for Development and Sudan Government to Announce Maternal and Child Health Initiative

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Deanna.Congileo@cartercenter.org

ATLANTA…In a signing ceremony today in Khartoum, Sudan, The Carter Center joined officials from the Qatar Fund for Development, the Sudanese Federal Ministry of Health, and other dignitaries, including the ambassador of the state of Qatar to the Republic of Sudan, to mark the beginning of the first phase of a five-year partnership to improve maternal and child health in Sudan.

As part of a Sudanese Public Health Training Initiative, the Center is assisting the Federal Ministry of Health to build the skills and training capacity of frontline health workers to meet the health needs of mothers and children in rural areas.

“The partnership between Qatar Fund for Development and The Carter Center aims to support the health sector and achieve peace in Sudan,” said Mr. Khalifa Al-Kuwari, director general of the Qatar Fund for Development. “The agreement enables achieving maternal and child health in Sudan through providing educational and technical support.”

The ceremony marked the official signing of a framework agreement between The Carter Center and the Qatar Fund for Development. Specifically, the project will focus on increasing the knowledge and skills of health professionals and health science educators, and updating the equipment and protocols for state health science training institutions.

“Human resource development in the health care field in Sudan is a challenge. The Sudan Public Health Training Initiative will advance health care capacity and improve health outcomes in Sudan,” said Dr. Isameldin Mohamed Abdalla, undersecretary, Sudan Federal Ministry of Health. “We are grateful to have The Carter Center and the Qatar Fund for Development join us in this important partnership.”

“This partnership will make a sustainable impact to improve maternal and child health in Sudan,” said Stephen Blount, M.D., director of the initiative at The Carter Center. “The support from the Qatar Fund for Development strengthens our ability to assist Sudan’s dedicated health professionals to better serve women and children in rural communities.”

The Center has worked with the Sudanese government to assess health science training institutions, recommend key updates to midwifery and community health curricula, and train more health science educators. Last year, The Carter Center donated supplies and equipment to serve eight institutions of the Academy of Health Sciences and Schools of Midwifery as well as the Continuing Professional Development Centers.

The ultimate goal is for nine states covering half of Sudan to have revised curricula. In addition, plans are to train 265 faculty and 10,000 midwives and community health workers. In total, the learning environment of 50 health science institutions will have been vastly improved through customized training, revised curricula, and equipment upgrades.

Learn more about this initiative here >

According to World Bank indicator estimates, the maternal mortality ratio for Sudan in 2015 was 311 per 100,000 child births, with a decreasing trend over the years. Similarly, child mortality was reduced to 70 per 1,000 live births. The availability and accessibility of skilled frontline health workers is a priority in strategies adopted by the government of Sudan to improve the health of mothers and their children.

The Carter Center has worked since 1986 with the people of Sudan to help resolve conflict, negotiate peace, increase crop production, and improve health. After an initial focus on working with farmers, the Center expanded into additional programs, including the prevention or elimination of Guinea worm disease, river blindness, and trachoma.

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"Waging Peace. Fighting Disease. Building Hope."
A not-for-profit, nongovernmental organization, The Carter Center has helped to improve life for people in more than 80 countries by resolving conflicts; advancing democracy, human rights, and economic opportunity; preventing diseases; and improving mental health care. The Carter Center was founded in 1982 by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, in partnership with Emory University, to advance peace and health worldwide.