FIRST Lady Thandiwe Banda has called for concerted efforts among stakeholders to reduce cases of maternal mortality and morbidity in the country, which has continued to be a challenge.

Mrs Banda said it was sad that every four hours in a peaceful and vibrant Zambia, a woman dies because of complications arising from pregnancy and childbirth, leaving homes broken and children orphaned.

Speaking at State House yesterday when she received three-ambulance bikes worth more than K8 million from Zambike Zambia, Mrs Banda said the fight against maternal mortality and morbidity requires the support of all.

She said the country still faced many immense and grave challenges in the areas of universal health care and educational provision, eradication of poverty, rolling back malaria, among others.

She said the devastating loss of life translated into 591 women deaths out of every 100,000 that give birth and that such deaths should not be allowed to continue.

She added the United Nations had set the millennium development goals (MDGs) as targets by signatory States of which Zambia is part and that there was need to work as a team if the country was to attain the goals.

"As you may be aware among the targets are MDGs number four and five which call for reduction in child mortality and improvement of maternal mortality by 2015," she said.

She, however, commended the Government and cooperating partners on its stance taken to reduce the deaths.

She commended Zambike for its contribution towards the intervention of improving the health of Zambians by providing the bikes and assured that she would ensure that the bikes were deployed to communities and put to good use.

And speaking on behalf of Zambike, Chilewu Muyoya said the organisation had been following the activities on maternal mortality and morbidity with keen interest hence the donation.

And Africare country representative, Gordon Brown said the organisation was committed to supporting such initiatives aimed at serving lives of mothers and children.

At the same function, White Ribbon Alliance National coordinator, Friday Nkhoma challenged Zambians to come out in the open and begin discussing issues of maternal mortality and morbidity in communities.