UNFPA organized a session on the “Revival of Midwifery in Egypt,” at the Global Health Congress on Population, Health and Human Development on October 24.

The session was moderated by Dr. Abla Al-Alfy, Deputy Minister of Health and Population for Population and Family Development, and brought together Dr. Sally Pairman, Chief Executive of the international Confederation of Midwives, Dr. Elizabeth Franklin, Advisor Midwife, International Confederation of Midwives, Dr. Atf Gherissi, Assistant Professor, University of Tunis El Manar, Tunisia, Midwife Advisor, International Confederation of Midwives, Dr. Maha Mowafy, Reproductive Health Programme Specialist at UNFPA, Dr. Mohamed Afifi, Regional Adviser, Women's Health, WHO, Dr. Kawther Mahmoud, Chair of Egyptian Nurses Syndicate and Dr. Nevein Dous, Health Specialist, UNICEF Egypt.

Panelists highlighted the role of midwifery in saving lives and improving maternal and newborn health, as well as accelerating progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Participants also discussed midwifery as a separate and autonomous profession and creating an enabling environment for safe normal delivery.

Dr. Maha Mowafy presented the journey of midwifery in Egypt, explaining that UNFPA worked with the Ministry of Health and Population to develop the National Midwifery Strategy for Egypt in collaboration with WHO and UNICEF.

The strategy builds on Egypt’s commitment to the Regional Midwifery and Nursing Strategic Framework 2022-2030 and comes on the heels of the Regional Midwifery Forum that was held in May 2023.

“When we are talking about midwifery, we are talking about saving lives –  4.3 million lives,” Mowafy said, “we are talking about reducing maternal mortality by 50,000 in 2035.”