Angola

Life in Angola as a young girl came with a unique set of obstacles. As she suffered from dangerous high blood pressure while pregnant with her fourth child, Ndola's mother told her that delivery would be difficult and that if she didn’t survive, five-year old Ndola would need to take care of her two younger sisters and support the family. These alarming and often fatal pregnancy and childbirth stories were all too common in her community in rural Angola. Exposed to the dangers of childbirth at a young age within her own family and community, Ndola was determined to improve maternal health for women at home and around the globe. Now with Ndola as our Medical Director, VSI is proud to bring our misoprostol program to her home country.

VSI is committed to supporting the Ministry of Health and local health care providers in making pregnancy and childbirth safer for Angolan women through the integration of life-saving misoprostol tablets into safe motherhood programs and policies. At the invitation of the Ministry of Health, VSI began a safe motherhood program in Angola in October 2011.

• In Spring 2012, VSI provided guidance to the Ministry of Health and the National Directorate of Public Health on the development of a postabortion care (PAC) protocol for a use in a demonstration project in 10 health centers and hospitals in three municipalities in Luanda Province. In collaboration with the Ministry and the Bixby Center for Population, Health and Sustainability at UC Berkeley, the three-month project introducing misoprostol in PAC expanded access to treatment of incomplete abortion and postabortion contraception. Read more. 
• VSI collaborated with the Association of Gynecologists and Obstetricians of Angola to conduct sensitization workshops for health care providers and policymakers on the use of misoprostol in women's health.
• With VSI's technical support, the Ministry of Health and National Directorate of Medicines and Equipment approved misoprostol for use in management of postpartum hemorrhage and postabortion care in April 2012.

By the Numbers

Estimated Total Population

19.6 M

Lifetime Risk of Maternal Death

1 woman in 29

Maternal Mortality Ratio

610 per 100,000 live births

Total Fertility Rate

5.7

Births Attended by Skilled Health Provider

47%

Registered Misoprostol Product(s): Ace Miso®

Source: PRB, 2011