Abuja — As part of efforts to reduce the incidence of high maternal and mortality rate in Africa, ministers� of health in ECOWAS states have called for the passage of abortion laws.The call was contained in a communiqu� issued after the first extraordinary assembly of ECOWAS health ministers held on October 23 at Obudu Mountain Resort in Cross River State, Nigeria.

In the communique made available to newsmen yesterday in Abuja, the ministers said that abortion laws "will reflect the social contexts" of respective ECOWAS member states. They recalled the effect of unsafe abortion as a contributory factor to high maternal mortality rate, saying abortion laws when enacted would lead to a reduction in the number of women who die from pregnancy related causes. The ministers noted the importance of involving men in family planning interventions as part of strategies to address the issues of maternal, newborn and child health. They called on the West African Health Organisation (WAHO), to identify best practices in maternal, newborn and child health and to disseminate same practices among member states, in order to develop a common strategic plan for the attainment of MDGs 4, 5 and 6.

The ministers identified tools for health system strengthening which include human resources for health, logistics management system, policy development, data generation and operations management strengthening as keys to improve maternal, newborn and child health. The assembly emphasised the importance of the coordinating role of WAHO in the region and therefore called on the organisation to develop implementation plans for the various declarations, resolutions that were adopted by member states on maternal, newborn and neonatal health and prioritise specific areas that will form the basis of a roadmap. On health insurance schemes, the ministers proposed that WAHO should support member states financially and technically to implement the schemes as a means of health financing. The ministers proposed a special summit of ECOWAS heads of state to discuss maternal, newborn and child health issues, adding that finance ministers should be involved to underscore the Abuja commitment of 15 percent allocation to the health sector and five percent to reproductive health. They also proposed that a special fund be established to address the issues of maternal and infant mortality in the sub-region.

The ministers emphasised the need to review the training curricula of health institutions in ECOWAS states, in order to address the attitudes and the ethos of health personnel as part of the approach to improve on the quality of human resources for maternal, newborn and child health. They futher called on WAHO to consider the use of telemedicine as a strategy for improving human resources for health.