Blue Nile State Celebrates Graduation of 50 Midwives

Damazin – 50 midwives graduated in Damazin city, from which they will be distributed to villages and remote areas to reduce maternal mortality in the Blue Nile state.
Midwives received a one-year training with the support of the United Nations Fund for Population who ensured the training of thirty of them, while the Community Development Fund of Geissan locality ensured the training of the other twenty.
The course included theoretical and practical training in primary care for pregnant women and obstetrics and early detection of dangerous situations. The midwife's is not limited to obstetrics, but includes raising awareness, health education and breastfeeding promotion based on good nutrition and fighting harmful habits.
The celebration was attended by the governor's representative, state reproductive health officials and other ministries, a representative of the United Nations Fund for Population, Sudan, and representatives of United Nations agencies and national and international organizations working in the state.
The Governor's Advisor, Al-Hindi Al-Raiah addressed the ceremony, stressing the importance of employing midwives as part of the health staff. He said midwives are important because they promote the health of mothers and babies and reduce maternal mortality. He pledged to employ all graduates in coordination with various localities in the state.
Minister of Health in Blue Nile State, Huwaida Yasin Hamid appealed, in her speech, to the governor's representative for continued political support for midwife employment, especially in remote villages where there is no trained personnel to provide health services. She pledged to attempt to employ the graduates in the public service and stressed the importance of rehabilitation service centres affected by the war.
The representative of the United Nations Fund in Sudan said this great achievement is the result of the tireless effort of the graduates, teachers, Ministry of Health, Academy of Health Sciences and employees of the United Nations Fund for Population in Khartoum. She expressed her thanks to the graduates' families for their support for their daughters; she hoped other families will send their daughters for training as midwives and pledged more support to reduce maternal mortality in the Blue Nile State.
Dr. Asim Tenfafi, Coordinator of Reproductive Health in the state, expressed his thanks to the United Nations Fund for Population for supporting the training, the rehabilitation of health services and the provision of equipment.  He affirmed the need to continue coordination between all partners working in the state's health sector and to employ midwives.
The Dean of Midwives School, Al-Jadia Ismail, recommended the graduates work hard, keep family secrets and not practice harmful habits, such as female genital mutilation.
On the other hand, the Council of Monitoring Maternal Mortality in Blue Nile state held a meeting to discuss the recommendations of their previous meeting. They reviewed the maternal deaths from January to August of this year and other incidents in this period. They also listened to the participants' proposals and made several recommendations to be implemented before the next Council meeting.