UN and Government staff raise vital funds for new maternity wing in Bamiyan

July 17, 2007 (UNAMA): United Nations and Provincial Government staff in Bamiyan province joined forces today and donated $10,000 USD to buy land for a new maternity waiting home which will be annexed to Bamiyan's main Hospital.

This new facility will provide essential healthcare for expectant mothers in Bamiyan, reducing the risk of both maternal and child mortality. The new maternity home will provide accommodation and skilled assistance for expectant mothers traveling from rural areas where health facilities are scarce.

The maternal waiting home is part of a wider project being implemented by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) which will see maternity homes being built in five of Afghanistan's northern provinces.

The Bamiyan facility had been on hold because of a lack of Government funds to buy suitable land when staff from United Nations agencies , the Provincial Government in Bamiyan clubbed together to raise nearly $7,000 USD. With further donations from staff at the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC), local NGO's, and the Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) $10,000 USD has now been raised, enabling the local authorities to buy suitable land for the UNICEF project to commence.

The Head of the United Nations Mission in Afghanistan's (UNAMA) office in Bamiyan, Heran Song said: "While huge progress has been made in maternal healthcare in recent years, far too many Afghan women continue to die from preventable causes during child birth.

"We are part of Bamiyan's community, we live and work with the people of Bamiyan and recognise the challenges and difficulties facing expectant mothers. It is essential that we all help where we can and that is why our staff joined forces to raise the money for the land required to build Bamiyan's new maternity waiting home.

"Bamiyan's new maternity waiting home will play a vital role in helping hundreds of expectant mothers from across the province, providing them and their children with the healthy start in life that they deserve."