The Center for Health, Human Rights and Development (CEHURD) within the Coalition to stop maternal mortality due to unsafe abortion (CSMMUA) is calling upon Concepts in form of story ideas from journalists in mainstream media (Print, Electronic and Online) from East African states countries (Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi). These story ideas will form a basis from which successful candidates will be invited to participate in a media fellowship for the year 2015.
The objective of this competition and media fellowship is to build capacity of journalists in main stream media to pursue high-quality, balanced and informative reporting on Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights through training and a mentoring aiming at increasing awareness of the public about the magnitude of the public health crisis of unsafe abortion and its impact.
As 2015 fast approaches, East African countries (Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi) are finding themselves in the unfortunate position of not being able to achieve Millennium Development Goal (MDG) number five which among others aims at reducing maternal mortality by three quarters (¾) and achieving universal access to Reproductive Health (RH) by 2015.
It should be noted that maternal mortality ratios in East Africa remain unacceptably very high. For example, according to the Preliminary Uganda Demographic Health Survey 2011, the maternal mortality ratio in Uganda stands at 438 for every 100,000 live births (UBOs 2012). In Kenyathe maternal mortality ratio is estimated at 460 deaths per 100,000 live births as well as 454 in Tanzania (TDHS, 2012). This adds up to about 500 maternal deaths per 100,000 in Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania. On the other hand for example, in Kenya unsafe abortion accounts for more than 35% and 26 % in Uganda of maternal deaths, this is far higher than the global rate standing at 13%.
Successful applicants will attend a week long residential orientation training on sexual reproductive health and rights and will be supported to investigate their submitted story concepts which will then be edited printed and published.Find FULL CALL FOR STORY IDEAS