The National Initiative for Human Development (INDH) celebrates its 19th anniversary under the slogan “The first thousand days: Foundation of the future of our children”. The opportunity to focus on the health and nutrition of mothers and children. Although considerable efforts have been made, recent figures are worrying and prove that there is still a long way to go in this area.
In Morocco, 15,000 children die each year before the age of 5, 60% of them during the first 28 days of life. An alarming observation drawn up by the INDH, which is launching, on the occasion of its 19th anniversary, a new campaign to try to raise awareness of the vital importance of the first 1,000 days of a child’s life.
This period, which runs from conception until the end of the second year, represents, in the opinion of all experts, a decisive window of development, which has a lasting influence on the future health and well-being of the new generation. and the creation of quality national human capital.
Investment in early childhood development is, according to experts and specialists, 1.5 to 10 times more effective than investments made in other stages of life.
Persistent disparities
These figures also demonstrate the persistence of disparities between cities and countryside. These figures reveal significant gaps in access to prenatal and obstetric care between rural and urban populations. Indeed, the maternal mortality rate remains a crucial indicator of disparity. In rural areas, this rate reaches two and a half times that recorded in urban areas, with 111.1 deaths per 100,000 live births, compared to 44.6 per 100,000.
At the same time, data from the National Population and Family Health Survey reveal a mixed reality regarding prenatal consultations. Although more than 88% of pregnant women use it, only 53.5% of them receive the four prenatal consultations recommended by health authorities.
This gap is particularly marked in rural areas, where only 38.5% of women receive adequate prenatal care, compared to 65.6% in urban areas.
Alarming overweight
The burden of childhood health is not limited to the first years of life. Disparities also persist in growth and nutrition. Figures reveal that 10.4% of children under 5 suffer from stunted growth in urban areas, compared to 20.5% in rural areas.
At the same time, disorders linked to being overweight, such as overweight and obesity, are constantly increasing. In 2018, these conditions affected 10.8% and 2.9% of children, respectively, posing a growing challenge to public health. Here again, regional disparities are widening.
The INDH considers the situation alarming in two regions, namely, Laâyoune-Sakia El Hamra and Béni Mellal-Khénifra, where the stunting rate is 19% and 17.4%, respectively. The region where this rate is lowest is Dakhla Ouad Eddahab (6.1%), while the other regions are between 7% and 12%.
In this sense, the INDH has set up a Community Health System in three priority regions (Béni Mellal-Khénifra, Marrakech-Safi and Drâa-Tafilalet), in order to reduce territorial inequalities in terms of access to care, while taking into account socio-economic and cultural factors.
Expanded campaigns
Furthermore, other campaigns have been launched by the INDH to reduce these gaps, notably the National Nutrition Program, the National Program for Monitoring and Management of Pregnancies and Childbirths and the National Family Planning Program. The choice of this theme is also in line with the objectives of the third phase of the INDH which focused on the promotion of human capital, by investing in the development of early childhood, one of the axes of the fourth program entitled “Boosting the human capital of rising generations”. This pays particular attention to education as well as maternal and child health and nutrition.
During the celebrations held across Morocco, thousands of people were able to benefit from the services of medical caravans. A maternity home was also inaugurated in M’rirt, with the aim of bringing health services closer to women in this region in addition to supporting and accompanying pregnant women before, during and after childbirth, in particularly those in rural and mountainous areas.
Note that, as part of its third phase intended to promote human capital, the INDH worked by investing in early childhood development, indicated the wali-national coordinator of the INDH, Mohammed Dardouri. He also stressed that a community health system has been put in place.
The objective is to improve access to maternal and child health services as well as nutrition, within the framework of an agreement with the Ministry of Health and Social Protection and UNICEF. The experimentation of this system, he added, was carried out in 49 circles located in three priority regions. He also noted that a strategy aimed at generalizing this system has been developed, with a view to its integration into the national health system, in partnership with the supervisory department, and this, with the support of the World Bank.
Faiza Rhoul / ECO Inspirations
