By Sola Ogundipe
NIGERIAN First Lady, Dame Patience Goodluck Jonathan, is among the lineup of First Ladies and 3,000 representatives from an estimated 140 countries attending the Women Deliver 2010 conference  which opened yesterday in  Washington DC, USA.

Other First Ladies at the conference are Sia Nyama Koroma of Sierra Leone, Ernestina Naadu Mills (Ghana),  Mama Fatma Karume (Zanzibar), and Kagame (Rwanda).

Also on the attendance list are  Mama Salma Kikwete of Tanzania, Azeb Mesfin (Ethiopia), Ida Odinga (Kenya), and Sandra Roelofs (Georgia).  Crown Princess Mary of Denmark as well as global leaders,  advocates, UN agencies, researchers, government officials, Ministers of Health and  Finance are gracing the conference which is examining the progress and challenges of global maternal health..

Notable female personalities are UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, US Secretary of HHS Kathleen Sebelius, former President of Chile Michelle Bachelet, WHO Director-General Margaret Chan, Melinda Gates, Arianna Huffington, Christiane Amanpour of CNN, Ashley Judd, and Christy Turlington.

Other UN headliners  include Thoraya Obaid (UNFPA), Helen Clark (UNDP), Michel Sidibe (UNAIDS), and Anthony Lake (UNICEF).Women Deliver 2010 is a global conference bringing together leaders from around the world to call for action against maternal death. It is highlighting achievements in reducing maternal mortality, breakthroughs in reproductive technology, the role of women’s health in development, and other obstacles to improving maternal health around the world.

The event which has been dubbed the world’s largest maternal health conference has issued a call for  US$12 billion (N1.8 trillion) increase in funding commitments each year from all countries to improve maternal, reproductive and newborn health.

High on the  agenda  is the urgent need to save the lives of the 350,000-500,000 women who die from pregnancy- and childbirth-related causes each year.

Estimates by the UN and World Bank show that 144 women or over 52,000 women die in Nigeria alone everyday from pregnancy and childbirth complications as a result of ignorance, illiteracy and inadequate facilities.

In a statement, Jill Sheffield, President of Women Deliver. said: “Women deliver enormous social and economic benefits to their families, communities, and nations. We’ve made great progress on maternal health in many areas of the world, but our leaders need to realize that this issue is at the core of global development, economic well-being, and even national security. When women survive, families—and societies—thrive.”

Women Deliver conference Co-Chair Dr. Fred Sai of Ghana observed that: “We know what needs to be done to save women’s lives, and everyone has a stake. We are calling on governments to double today’s investment in maternal health— a small price to pay that would yield extraordinary return. In a world of difficult problems, here is a major challenge we can rise to, and overcome.”

A statement from the conference secretariat observed that “Cost-effective solutions to prevent maternal deaths already exist. The Guttmacher Institute and UNFPA estimate that ensuring access to modern contraception could prevent up to a third of maternal deaths.”

The statement noted that “Governments and donors have consistently underfunded maternal and reproductive health issues. As a result, few developing countries are on track to meet Millennium Development Goal 5, which aims to reduce maternal mortality by three-quarters and ensure universal access to reproductive health by the year 2015.”

It is believed that by addressing the current maternal and neonatal mortality rates and massive unmet contraceptive needs with proven interventions would cost US$24 billion (N2.4 trillion) per year, or just US $4.50 (N6,750) per capita worldwide, about double the current level of investment.

“Such an investment would save 70 percent of the women’s lives and 44 percent of the newborn lives currently lost. Benefits would extend beyond health, to improving the stability and economic prosperity of societies and nations.

Coming at a critical  moment, three weeks before the G8 Summit, where host country Canada has made it a major focus, the meeting’s location in Washington, DC is largely seen as a strong partnership in promotion of global maternal and reproductive health.