13 women die weekly in Mauritania while giving birth: UN agency

Thirteen women die each week in Mauritania while giving birth. 

The Resident Representative of the UN Population Fund, UNFPA, Cecile Compaore Zoungrana, said this in the capital Nouakchott during an event to mark the International Day of the Midwife. 

She lamented the lack of midwives for a population of 3.5 million people. 

She cited a study conducted last year which reported that 87 percent of these deaths during child birth could be prevented if midwifery services are accessible and reliable. 

UNFPA says the maternal mortality rate in Mauritania stands at 586 out of 100,000, whereas infant mortality stands at 47 for every one thousand live births. 

Mauritania's health sector is suffering a serious shortage of doctors and other specialist personnel, and this has forced the authorities to seek assistance from countries like Morocco and Tunisia.


SOURCE: XINHUAN