Free maternity in Kinshasa: a major step forward for women’s health
The Democratic Republic of the Congo has recently taken a decisive step in improving access to maternal health care. Indeed, President Félix Tshisekedi launched the free maternity program in Kinshasa, aiming to offer free health services to pregnant women.
According to the Minister of Public Health, Samuel-Roger Kamba, this program will cover at least 320 health centers and 50 general reference hospitals in Kinshasa. This is an ambitious measure which aims to put an end to the practice where some women were held hostage because they were unable to pay maternity costs.
As maternal and infant mortality is unfortunately high in the Congolese capital, this program is an urgent and necessary response to save lives. It is also a demonstration of political will on the part of President Tshisekedi to improve the living and working conditions of health professionals.
To facilitate access to these free services, the population is encouraged to dial *151# on their mobile phone to find out which hospitals are participating in this program.
This initiative also received support from the World Health Organization (WHO). Dr. Boureima SAMBO, WHO Representative in DRC, called on partners to support this program and urged health providers to provide quality care.
The establishment of a free health care system in Kinshasa is a strong signal sent to the Congolese population, showing that the government cares about the health of pregnant women and their newborns. This will undoubtedly contribute to reducing the number of maternal and child deaths, saving lives and improving the health of the population.
This free maternity program should gradually be extended to other provinces of the country, thus allowing a greater number of women to have access to quality maternal health care.
In conclusion, free maternity in Kinshasa is a major step forward in the realization of the right to health for Congolese women. We hope this example will inspire other countries to put in place similar measures to ensure equitable access to maternal health care and reduce maternal and child mortality rates.