The southern African nation has one of the world's highest maternal mortality rates, at 489 deaths per 100,00 live births (compared to seven deaths per 100,000 live births in Canada), and in places such as Nampula province in the country's north, it's not uncommon for women to die simply because they can't get to the hospital in time to deliver their babies.
This $4.5 million commitment is the result of a call for proposals from the 19 implementation research teams under this partnership. The new grants will allow nine of these teams to scale up promising interventions and address the need for family-planning education, support for adolescent mothers, and sexual and reproductive health services and information. These grants complement the partnership’s existing investments in African and Canadian research teams to address the root causes of high maternal and child morbidity and mortality.