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What's New

• Public Dialogue on the Report of the Mission to India of UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health: The public dialogue was organized by the National Alliance for Maternal Health and Human Rights (NAMHHR) on 13th August 2010 in New Delhi, in order to disseminate the report of the former UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health (UN SR-RH), Paul Hunt who visited India on a mission in 2007 to understand the steps taken by the government regarding maternal mortality. The report provides a right-to-health analysis of the serious issue of preventable maternal deaths in India. Through the dialogue, the Alliance attempted to engage concerned stakeholders in discussing the findings and considering how to implement the recommendations of the report.

• Maternal Mortality, Human Rights & Discrimination - UN Video - A recent study by United Nations Human Rights office (OHCHR) finds a clear relationship between maternal mortality and morbidity and violations of human rights.This short documentary is the story of a widower whose wife died during childbirth. He speaks of how his wife's death could have been prevented. The UN human rights office says discrimination against women is causing unnecessary deaths and injuries during pregnancy and childbirth.

• Celebrating of International Women's Health Day for Action on 28 May 2010, a hundred rural women from many districts of Uttar Pradesh got together to share their experiences of five years of the NRHM, and to present their demands to the Minister of Health….

• National Alliance for Maternal Health and Human Rights (NAMHHR) was formally constituted in January 2010 when civil society organizations from seven states of India and a few individuals got together and agreed to strengthen maternal health as an issue of women’s human rights. It is currently being run by an 11 member Steering Committee; with its Secretariat housed at SAHAYOG, Delhi.

• The Mission of United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health (UN SR-RH) Paul Hunt to India was effective in raising the focus on maternal mortality as a human rights issue in the country. SAHAYOG organized an extremely successful Civil Society Dialogue for the visit of the UN SR and his team on 1 Dec 2007 in collaboration with other organizations and individuals. See here for the final report of the Mission. 

• Video documentary Voices from the Ground on the efforts with the Mahila Swasthya Adhikar Manch (Women's Health Rights Forum) in Uttar Pradesh. The film highlights the persisting challenges with the quality of services in rural health centres in Uttar Pradesh, the state with extremely high maternal mortality. The film depicts how community discussions on actual experiences of poor maternal health services lead to rights-based analyses. The local women's organizations are thus able to come together as claimants and create a demand for improvements in health services.

• An independent consultant has carried out an evaluation of the Mahila Swasthya Adhikar Manch in December 2009. The evaluation examines to what extent has the formation of the MSAM been an effective strategy in promoting women's right to healthcare in Uttar Pradesh in the last three years. Based on field visits and review of documents, the evaluation also provides suggestions for the future. For the complete text, see here

• The Mahila Swasthya Adhikar Manch has been monitoring the use of Untied Funds (2008-2009) for their local PHCs and Sub-Centres in five districts, along with a survey of how much the rural poor are spending on maternal and child care. This report is being presented by the MSAM leaders to their district health officials in December 2009. see here

• On 31 August 2009, the Mahila Swasthya Adhikar Manch organized with Healthwatch Forum a Public Hearing on the Quality of Care in Maternal Health Services in Uttar Pradesh. Eight testimonies were presented before the Citizen's Panel, which included the renowned ex-MP and film and theatre personality, Shabana Azmi, and 350 participants. see here

• YOUTH FOR CHANGE: On 13th November, 2009, a campaign for a Youth Policy in Uttar Pradesh ("Yuva Niti Pairokari Abhiyan") was launched at Press Club, Lucknow, before 80 media persons, youth and eminent personalities. The programme was co-organised by SAHAYOG and Media Nest. A poster demanding Youth Policy in Uttar Pradesh was launched on this occasion. see here 

• On 29 July, 2009, SAHAYOG joined Centre for Legislative Research and Advocacy (CLRA) to launch a Welcome Kit for new parliamentarians elected in the recent General Elections. SAHAYOG in partnership with several organizations and individuals prepared a Briefing Sheet and a Booklet on Maternal Death and Disability in India 2009. For details, see here 

• On the occasion of 28 May, the International Day of Action on Women’s Health, the Healthwatch Forum and Mahila Swasthya Adhikar Manch (MSAM) of Uttar Pradesh, organized a Public Dialogue on the Right to Maternal Health in Uttar Pradesh. For more details see here 

• In completion of the year-long voluntary collaboration by NGOs and researchers on the study of women's experiences with attempting to seek institutional care, SAHAYOG facilitated the national sharing meeting of the draft report - "Glimpses of institutional maternity care – some food for thought" on April 22, 09 at New Delhi. For details, see here

• As part of Healthwatch Forum and the Steering group for ICPD+15 Review, SAHAYOG helped to organize a Civil Society Dialogue for Action towards realizing the Right to Maternal Health in India on 21 April at New Delhi. see here

• YOUTH FOR CHANGE: on 6th April 2009, SAHAYOG organized a State level Advocacy Dialogue of various department officials and young people from ten districts of UP,  the eve of World Health Day at Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. For Photographs see here
  

• SAHAYOG organized with KIT (Amsterdam) and IDRC (New Delhi) a South Asia Conference on Gender Knowledge Production and Dissemination in Development (January 30-31, 2009, Kathmandu). see here