MDG 5, HUMAN RIGHTS, AND MATERNAL HEALTH IN AFRICA
is the invisible hand that steers efforts toward interventions that work. Its
importance rests on conserving resources and promoting efficiency.
For CSOs who are led by experts in their chosen fields, the technical
resources at their disposal could be harnessed and channeled toward
researching critical elements of maternal health. Many of these
organizations have an army of volunteers who could be trained in relevant
methodologies and be made to be useful in research projects of the
organization. The credibility of CSOs, in addition to their proximity to the
places where the people live and work, gives them an advantage in terms of
access to vital information that could be transformed into useful data for the
benefit of any interested party. CSOs could commission surveys on any
relevant subject, using volunteers on the ground to access remote areas that
are not easily accessible by government officials. Gathering, collating, and
disseminating accurate, timely, and reliable health information is one of the
principal areas CSOs could occupy as contributors to advancement of
maternal health.
Many research projects are undertaken with the understanding that the
result will inform policy decisions; still, others are organized solely for
dissemination of the findings to the target population. Regarding studies
intended primarily for the public, the aim is often to influence changes in
attitude, behavior, or practice. Publication of research findings or any other
important information is a potent weapon at the hands of CSOs that could
advance the interest of mothers in the region. Empowerment, whether at
the individual or community level, means that the individual or community
is armed with the necessary information with which to protect herself or
themselves.182 Having this information in a printed form – leaflets,
brochures, pamphlets, and so forth – provides an easily accessible reference
material for use when the need arises. This should be supplemented with
publication via mass media (television and radio houses, for instance) and
the Internet.
V. MATERNAL HEALTH AND HUMAN RIGHTS
A 2005 publication by the Millennium Development Project captures the
link between human rights and the nature of strategies that are vital to
positioning Africa on the right path toward attaining the various
182. See Obiajulu Nnamuchi, HEALTH AND MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS IN
AFRICA: DECONSTRUCTING THE THORNY PATH TO SUCCESS, IN THE RIGHT TO HEALTH: A
MULTI-COUNTRY STUDY OF LAW, POLICY AND PRACTICE (Obiajulu Nnamuchi et al. eds.,
forthcoming 2014) (discussing individual and civil society empowerment as a critical
element of realizing the right to health in Africa).
