Africa continues to carry the weight of preventable maternal and newborn deaths, with an estimated 178,000 mothers and 1,000,000 newborns lost every year, despite the knowledge and tools that could save them. This reality shaped the recent Regional Think Tank on Accelerating MNCH Innovations in Abuja, where health leaders and practitioners from across the continent came together not simply to review data, but to confront the question that matters most: If we know what works, why are women still dying? White Ribbon Alliance Kenya was represented by our Programs Officer, Reagun Andera, who brought forward the lived experiences and demands of women and communities from across Kenya; voices that continue to remind us that change begins with listening.
The discussion in Abuja sought to move beyond isolated efforts and into collective action. Health actors within the room reflected on the gaps that persist between policy and practice; where promising innovations such as postpartum haemorrhage response, anaemia management, and group antenatal care often stall before reaching the women who need them. The challenge is not the absence of evidence, but the absence of systems that prioritize outcomes, invest in health workers, and meaningfully involve women in shaping the care they receive.
What stood out strongly is that progress cannot be sustained without both government commitment and real community accountability. Women are not passive recipients of services; they are rights-holders who understand what dignity, quality, and respect in care should look like. When communities are informed, connected, and able to speak, they shift the system. Even modest but consistent government investment, when reinforced by the voices and expectations of women and families, can turn commitments into action and ensure that care is not only promised, but delivered.
For White Ribbon Alliance Kenya, being part of this regional dialogue reaffirmed our role in ensuring that women’s voices guide the future of maternal and newborn health. Our ASK–LISTEN–ACT Power Approach continues to show that solutions endure when they are rooted in what women say they want. Abuja made one thing clear: Africa does not lack innovations; we simply need to act together, with accountability and clarity, to make sure every woman, everywhere, receives the respectful and life-saving care she deserves.
