IN Fiji, 30 out of 100,000 women die annually from pregnancy and child-birth complications.
This was revealed by the Fiji School of Medicine (FSM) Hibiscus contestant Nubhaisha Dean during the Fiji White Ribbon Safe Motherhood Initiative (FWRSMI) film night on Thursday.
Ms Dean in her address on the importance of maternal health said it's an area that should strongly involve the support of the whole community to ensure that all women deliver a child safely and with access to medical services. "It is in our hands to ensure that the next Fijian child born has a perfectly healthy mother rather than carelessly allowing her to become the next statistic," she said.
Ms Dean said every mother deserves the right to watch her child take their first steps, take them to the first day of school and watch the joy as children grow into adulthood.
She also highlighted that this year during the Hibiscus Festival she will advocate healthy eating at a young age, an effort to empower a healthy Fiji.
"I believe that proper nutrition is vital for everyone and when we look at the diet and nutrition of women, we all know that women will ensure that her husband and children will eat first and she will eat what remains. This is what that affects women's health," Ms Dean said.