Zambia—Moblising Access to Maternal Health Services (MAMaZ)

In Zambia, health indicators remain poor, with an estimated 2,600 maternal deaths annually, and a neonatal mortality rate of 30 deaths per 1,000 live births. The average rate of delivery by skilled birth attendants has remained stagnant at below 50 percent for more than 20 years.

The Mobilising Access to Maternal Health Services in Zambia (MAMaZ) programme was implemented in six districts in Central, Western, Southern and Muchinga provinces in rural Zambia and reached a population of more than 250,000 people.

The programme addressed the factors that affect access to maternal, newborn, and child health services, in particular emergency obstetric neonatal care, and developed appropriate home-based care of women who were pregnant or had recently delivered, as well as for their babies.

Sample Activities

• Work directly with communities to build social approval for behaviour change.
• Assist communities to develop their own emergency response systems.
• Worked through existing structures. *Train community health volunteers to manage the process.

Select Results

• Increased the usage of skilled attendants at childbirth from 43 percent to 70 percent.
• Increased the number of women who attended prenatal care in their first trimester from 47 percent to 71 percent. The proportion of those women who attended at least four antenatal care visits in total increased from 30 percent to 43 percent.
• Retained 95 percent of volunteers.