Zanzibar's infants and mothers at risk

Zanzibar. Data shows that a considerable number of infants born in Zanzibar's  major hospital of Mnazi Mmoja die before their fifth birthday.

Mother and infant mortality rates in the Isles remain alarming despite efforts by the government to cut down the number.

According to the Household Survey conducted in Zanzibar in 2015, about 307 pregnant women in 100,000 die while some 73 children out of 1,000 live births also die.

Though Zanzibar has made progress in other spheres within the health sector, lowering infant and mother mortality rates remain a challenge and lags behind other small countries in the region such Rwanda and Botswana.

According to reports issued last year by World Health Organisation (WHO) and Unicef for East African countries, Rwanda was shown as having reduced women mortality by 77 percent and that of children by 70 percent.

The reports show that child mortality in Rwanda dropped from 76 in every 1,000 live births in 2010 to 52 deaths in 1,000 births in 2015. Death among pregnant women also fell from 476 to 340 in every 100,000. This record means Rwanda was one of few countries in Africa which attained the MDG target on reducing deaths of pregnant women and children under five.