Bharti Airtel has partnered with Fountain Africa Trust to launch a community midwives programme to support expectant women, new mothers and new born babies in Bungoma.
The programme, which will be launched early next month, will also offer free calling and SMS service to 57 midwives and staff from Fountain Africa Trust to enable sharing of information and learning experiences between Bungoma County mothers and the County department of health officials.
Airtel will also offer 24-hour free internet connectivity for the Fountain Africa Trust, giving them unlimited access to online information that will help them carry out their programme effectively and interact with other midwives across the globe.
Airtel Kenya CEO Adil El Youssefi said that the company is helping the government to attain its Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) 4 and 5 by enabling midwives to communicate effectively, for free, especially when they are faced with emergencies.
“Airtel recognises the need for good health and general wellbeing of expectant women and infants,” he said. “This programme will help reduce risks of child and maternal mortality by ensuring women receive the right level of care when giving birth.”
Fountain Africa Trust CEO Alice Natecho said the communication platform will go a long way in making skilled assistance accessible to mothers in the county.
Ms Natecho noted that despite significant improvements in maternal and newborn care services in Bungoma, according to the recent results from the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2014, the proportion of deliveries conducted by a skilled provider is 41.4% while the proportion of women who delivered in health facilities is 40.8%.
She said the group is also working closely with the County and sub-County
Ministry of Health teams to support community midwives to improve the provision of services such as prenatal care, delivery, postnatal care, family planning as well as referral services among other key roles played by community midwives.
