CASE No - Inter-Parliamentary Union

- 24 - CL/183/SR.1
United Nations General Assembly should add a separate item to its agenda to address the issue
of cooperation between the United Nations, national parliaments and the IPU. Member
Parliaments of the IPU should communicate with their national Ambassadors to the United
Nations on that issue, and request that they should become formal co-sponsors to the
resolution. Decisive follow-up action was required on that issue.
Mr. F. Songane, Countdown to 2015 Maternal, Newborn and Child Survival, said that
global health partners had been encouraged and inspired by the Countdown to 2015
initiative’s cooperation with the 118 th Assembly of the IPU. It was unacceptable that billions of
women and children were denied their right to basic healthcare in many countries. That
situation caused nearly 10 million innocent deaths each year. Every minute a mother died from
pregnancy and childbirth-related causes, and every three seconds a child died from lack of
adequate healthcare. Lack of basic healthcare constituted the most serious threat to the lives of
the most vulnerable people, when combined with the current global food, energy and
economic crises. Of the 68 countries where 97 per cent of global maternal and child deaths
occurred, only 16 were on track to meet MDGs 4 and 5 on maternal and child health.
Almost all the causes of maternal mortality were known, preventable and treatable and
could be overcome if political and financial investments were put in place. While child
mortality from measles had reduced by 91 per cent in Africa, since vaccinations had been
scaled up, vital investment was lacking in other areas of care. In that regard, effective
treatment for pneumonia, malaria, and diarrhoea reached less than 50 per cent of children in
sub-Saharan Africa. Nearly half of all mothers in Africa and South Asia did not have access to
skilled care during childbirth, and 99 per cent of maternal deaths occurred in developing
countries. Such discrepancies called for urgent investment to ensure that all women and
children could access the full range of healthcare services they required.
Maternal and newborn child issues required greater political attention, improved
legislation and increased investment, and parliamentarians, as the voice of the voiceless, had a
vital role to play in approving national budgets and approving aid delivery for child and
maternal health, overseeing government implementation of healthcare policies and advocate
support for the attainment of the MDGs. Parliamentarians had been entrusted with the
privilege of making change happen. The goals pertaining to maternal and child health could
only be met through increased political will and investment. Global investment was also
insufficient, and approximately US$ 10 billion would be required each year, in order to meet
the MDGs by the target date of 2015. The increasing commitment of political leaders to the
cause of maternal and child health represented a beacon of hope for the future. Many
members of parliaments were also initiating efforts in their constituencies.
Urgent effort was required to change the course of the tragedy of maternal and infant
mortality. Parliamentarians had the power to initiate that change, and to work together to
ensure respect for the rights of millions of women and children. Accountability was key to
achieving the MDGs, and it was hoped that at the forthcoming Assembly of the IPU in
April 2009, parliamentarians would be able to report on the successes in their countries,
communities and societies.
The Secretary General said that he wished to underscore that at the 120 th Assembly of
the IPU to be held in Addis Ababa in April 2009, a report would be submitted on the measures
taken by individual parliaments to increase the chances of attaining the two MDGs on child
and maternal health. He therefore urged all Members to ensure that all parliamentary
committees were aware of the need for commitment in respect of meeting those goals. Efforts
in that regard would prove that it was possible to make a real change by working with the IPU
and national parliaments.