Red Nose Day '09 - Do Something Funny For Money, 13 March 2009 

Amina's Story

Africa

Amina is a midwife who used to work in Mandhera, a remote area of northern Kenya.

"Using a wheelbarrow to carry a woman who is giving birth is common in rural areas."

"It’s also common for women to be carried by camel, travelling overnight. She has to either sit up, or lie on her side, which is difficult for a woman who is in pain."

"It can be many kilometres to the nearest road, and even then, transport is rare and movement at night is limited. A woman in labour may have to wait a long time, and then take a lift from a lorry transporting goods, sitting on top of its load."

"Women who are bleeding, or those who have eclampsia (high blood pressure) need an ambulance. Putting them on a camel or truck can worsen their condition."

“I once delivered a mother who was so anaemic that she needed a blood transfusion and so we transported her to the health facility on a donkey. Luckily for her, a person with a good heart drove past us and stopped to help. She is alive today. But if we’d had facilities to detect her condition earlier locally, she could have had treatment for anaemia and wouldn’t have risked her life trying to get to hospital when it became an emergency.”

Thanks to the White Ribbon Alliance for providing Amina’s story. Comic Relief has been working in partnership with the White Ribbon Alliance to bring the shocking statistics of maternal deaths in Africa to the attention of a wider global audience of political leaders, who can act to change this appalling situation. Find out more about the White Ribbon Alliance on their website: http://www.whiteribbonalliance.org/.

Your cash can help Comic Relief to work with communities across Africa to ensure women have access to health care and know what to do to stay healthy during pregnancy and childbirth.

• Find out more about maternal health