Abu Dhabi launches $500m maternal health fund for Africa

A $500-million fund aimed at improving maternal and neonatal health in sub-Saharan Africa was launched Tuesday in Abu Dhabi at a time when Western countries are sharply cutting aid to Africa.

The Beginnings Fund brings together philanthropists including the Gates Foundation and the Mohamed bin Zayed Foundation for Humanity, run by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) president.

It set a deadline of 2030 to reach the $500-million target and has already reached $450 million in pledges, organisers said in a statement.

Trump’s aid freeze fuels urgency

The fund seeks to prevent more than 300 000 deaths and improve access to quality care for 34 million mothers and babies by that date.

An aid freeze ordered earlier this year by US President Donald Trump has slashed budgets for many humanitarian programmes.

“It’s a very critical time,” said Tala Al Ramahi, spokeswoman for the Mohamed bin Zayed Foundation for Humanity.

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“Philanthropy cannot fill the gaps that the aid cuts have left behind,” she told AFP, but the Beginnings Fund will target “the products, people, and systems required to improve and scale maternal and neonatal health”.

UAE controversy

The UAE has been accused of complicity in genocide by Sudan through its support for the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and of violating a UN arms embargo to supply weapons to Libya’s eastern military strongman Khalifa Haftar.

It denies any military involvement in the conflicts despite evidence presented by the United Nations and many other agencies.

Ten African countries to benefit

Over the next five years, the Beginnings Fund aims to partner with 10 countries: Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Lesotho, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda and Zimbabwe.

Most deaths in sub-Saharan Africa occur within the first month of life, and the region accounts for 70 percent of global maternal deaths, the statement said.

It said 182 000 women and 1.2 million newborns die each year from preventable causes, along with 950 000 stillbirths.

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