Togo: 'Some Women Give Birth On the Floor' Amid Staff Shortages, Poor Facilities

The Togolese authorities must urgently strengthen access to maternal healthcare in the country and reduce infant and neonatal mortality, Amnesty International said today to mark African Women's Day.

Amnesty International delegates conducted interviews with 21 people, including 13 patients, four midwives and four doctors, in five public healthcare facilities in Lomé, the capital, and Aného, in town in south-eastern Togo, in February and March 2023. A member of the Togo's Association of Midwives told Amnesty International that the shortage of midwives is due to a lack of regular examinations for entry into the public service, which hinders the recruitment of midwifery school graduates. There are also very few gynaecologists in public hospitals.

All maternity units visited also lacked the basic equipment needed to receive patients or provide care. In one of the Socio-Medical Centres in Lomé, Amnesty International delegates found dilapidated examination tables in the antenatal consultation room, while the lack of scialytic lamps meant that midwives had to use torches on their mobile phones during consultations.

One patient told Amnesty International:"In paediatrics, there isn't always room for a mother to bring her child. We had to buy a chair. Sometimes women are forced to stand with their children."

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