Syria: Obstacles to maternity care shatter women’s hopes for a safe pregnancy

November 12, 2024

The 13-year-long war in Syria, the earthquake in February 2023 and the lack of international support to rebuild healthcare infrastructure have deprived pregnant women and new mothers of their most fundamental right of access to adequate and dignified maternity care,...

Sierra Leone: Helping pregnant women reach hospital in time

September 21, 2023

“When I went into labour, I started making my way to the nearest health centre, but then I felt one of my two babies coming, so I spread my cloth under a mango tree and gave birth on my own,”...

MSF expands its maternal health activities in the South of Haiti

May 29, 2023

Nearly two years have passed since a 7.2 magnitude earthquake that struck the Sud department of Haiti on August 14, 2021, killing more than 2,000 people and injuring 12,000. But many communities are still reeling from the destruction. The earthquake...

Yemen: Giving birth in the face of persistent obstacles in Taiz

February 2, 2023

Nogood Mohammad Ahmed Shamsan was lying under the covers of her bed, exhausted. She rested her left hand on her belly trying to provide comfort while she drew long, slow breaths. Next to Nogood was her mother sitting in a...

Central African Republic: “To be born or to give birth is to take a risk”: maternal and child health as a forgotten emergency

January 16, 2023

Decades of instability and armed violence in Central African Republic (CAR) have contributed to essential medical care being out of reach for many pregnant women and newborn babies. Overshadowed by the security situation in the country, tackling this everyday emergency...

Chad: A new path, Her path

August 10, 2022

What would maternal healthcare look like if it was designed by the women who use it? An MSF team in Chad is working to find out... Noor Cornelissen, MSF project coordinator in Chad, shares that in the new MSF pilot...

Iraq: Delivering babies in a city with few maternity services

April 6, 2022

It is a rainy morning in the Al-Nahwaran d a group of women are lining the neighbourhood of Mosul, Iraq’s second-biggest city, and in front of a small medical facility. The stormy weather has not stopped them from coming. The...

New Year babies: The first MSF newborns of 2022

January 20, 2022

There is always a reason to find hope. For a second uncertain year in a row, many countries have faced the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, while, at the same time, conflict, disaster and obstacles to accessing care have hit...

Pakistan: After 12 years of support, MSF hands last hospital activities over in Timergara

February 8, 2021

Timergara is in the region of Lower Dir in Pakistan, close to the Afghan border and on the banks of the Panjkora River. Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has been working here for over 12 years, and at the end...

Pakistan: Witnessing poor mother and child healthcare in Balochistan

June 6, 2019

In Pakistan, thousands of women and infants die each year from medical conditions that are easily preventable. In the southwest province of Balochistan, which has some of the worst health statistics in the world, the situation is particularly dire. Médecins...