The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) celebrates International Women’s Day 2010 today. The theme for the United Nations this year is ‘Equal rights, equal opportunities: Progress for all’. The RCOG endorses the UN’s promotion of women’s human rights so that improvements to women’s livelihood and wellbeing can occur in under-resourced countries.
Equal rights for women mean better access to educational and employment opportunities. Direct and sustained action is needed to address the gender imbalance and issues that are specific to women in some societies. These issues include tackling domestic violence, intimate partner violence and female genital mutilation.
From the medical perspective, the RCOG would like to stress that women in under-resourced countries need better access to basic sexual and reproductive health services so that they can go on to have healthy pregnancies and healthy babies. This includes access to skilled birth attendants during birth but first, investment in the training of these birth attendants in emergency obstetric skills is required.
Dr Anthony Falconer, RCOG Vice President (International) said, “Any discussion about women’s health should also consider men’s roles in society. Part of the solution to improving sexual and reproductive healthcare is to encourage the male population to adopt more responsible attitudes. Wide educational programmes that promote safe sexual practice and reversing men’s resistance to using condoms would help lower the high HIV / Aids rates in under-resourced countries.”
Signatories to the UN Millennium Development Goals have up till 2015 to fulfil the goals. The RCOG will continue to work with other agencies and do what it can to ensure that MDG 5 (Improve maternal health) is achieved.
8 March 2010
Notes
The March on the Millennium Bridge occurs today, one of the many week-long activities occuring in London to mark International Women's Day. For more information, visit the Amnesty International webpages.
To view the Manifesto for Motherhood, please visit the Women and Children First webpages.