DR Congo

Maternal and Child Health Has Deteriorated

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has experienced serious deterioration in health services over the past decades. The total fertility rate is 6.3, one of the highest in Africa. The maternal mortality rate (MMR) is estimated at 1,100 per 100,000 live births; one of every 29 women dies of causes related to pregnancy and giving birth. Infant mortality in the first year is estimated at 92 per 1,000 and for children under five, it is 148 per 1,000. Family planning needs are not being met in the DRC; according to the 2007 Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS), about 58% of women in union (around 10 million) want to space the next birth or have no more births. Only 6.5% of women use a modern contraceptive method, whereas 16% did in 1990.

DRC’s population of 65 million is expected to double in the next 20 years, creating more pressure on economic, health, and family resources. Rebuilding the health care system and addressing reproductive health and family planning (RH/FP) issues in the DRC is a priority of USAID and other donors.
 

C-Change Leading Efforts to Reposition Family Planning

In addition, C-Change is mobilizing stakeholders, partners, and the government to reposition RH/FP policy and programming in DRC. A national RH/FP meeting was held in DRC in December 2009. The goal was to expand RH/FP efforts and create a cross-sectoral forum of government, donor agencies, and civil society to take forward efforts to elevate programming and policy for family planning and garner resources to do so.
 

C-Change Provides SBCC Technical Assistance

C-Change is supporting health service delivery projects to help mobilize community participation and utilization of health services for family planning and reproductive health, maternal and child health, malaria, and tuberculosis. Two large projects, Leadership Management and Sustainability (LMS) and Project AXxes have been operating for the past two years to rebuild health clinics, train health providers, and ensure that health care commodities are available. C-Change is providing technical assistance and capacity strengthening in behavior change communication to these service delivery partners in four areas in the eastern part of the country. Activities include designing a community participation strategy to increase use of services and improve the health status of communities they serve.