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NIGER – SCHOOL OF HUSBANDS – LED BY COMMUNITY EDLERS – REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH – SAFE BIRTHS – FAMILY PLANNING
Chief Yahya Louche of
Bande, a village in Niger, addresses his constituents about maternal health and
the importance of involving men. Credit: Joan Erakit/IPS
By Joan Erakit
BANDE,
Niger, Sep 11 2014 (IPS) - It is a long, 14-hour drive
from Niger’s capital city Niamey to the village of Bande. And the ride is a
dreary one as the roadside is bare. The occasional, lone goat herder is spotted
every few kilometres and the sightings become a cause of both confusion and
excitement since there aren’t any trees, or watering holes in sight.
Dry, hot
and often plagued with sandstorms, Niger has a population of over 17.2 million,
80 percent of which live in rural areas. Insecurity, drought and trans-border
issues contribute to this West African nation’s fragility where 50 percent of
its citizens have access to health services.
IPS has travelled here with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) to visit a
school that — on a continent where male involvement in maternal health is not
the norm and, in fact, men are oftentimes not present during the duration of
the pregnancy or the birthing process due to cultural reasons — is pretty
unique. It’s the School of Husbands.
Formed
with support from UNFPA in 2011, the school has over 137 locations in Niger’s
southern region of Zinder. Members are married men between the ages of 25 and
50, but young boys are now being recruited to come and sit in on meetings — to
learn from their elders.
As IPS
arrives at the village early one morning, a group of musicians
approach the vehicle playing ceremonial music; they precede a traditional chief
who is being escorted by his most trusted counsel and a throng of personal
security who frantically chase away curious children with sticks.
Yahya
Louche is the chief of Bande and he stops to talk to IPS about maternal health
and the importance of involving men.
“I am a
member of the School of Husbands,” Louche says of the informal institution
that brings together married men to discuss the gains of reproductive health,
family planning and empowerment.
“The School
of Husbands is where there is no teacher and there is not student,” Louche
continues, adding, “They are not getting paid, they are working for the well
being of the population.”
The School
of Husbands is a prime example of what can happen when men stand shoulder to
shoulder with women, promoting safe births.
The Perils
of No Care
While
visiting the health centre near the chief’s homestead, IPS spots a young woman
making her way across the compound to the maternity room. She is weak and can
barely make eye contact while two friends hold her up by each arm.
IPS is
told that she delivered a baby at home and has walked kilometres to get
help because she began bleeding profusely – it is an obstetrical emergency
known as postpartum haemorrhage (PPH).
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO),
PPH is responsible for about 25 percent of maternal mortality. Without prenatal
or antenatal visits during pregnancy, complications are more likely to arise —
some often leading to death.
“Before
the School of Husbands, women didn’t want to go for delivery at health centres,
they would stay at home and have their babies,” Louche explains.
According
to the World Bank, Niger has a Maternal Mortality Ration (MMR) of 630 to
100,000 live births.
Women in
Niger suffer.
It is a
very well-known custom in the country that women are not to show their pain or
discomfort. When they give birth, it is often in silence. The woman on
the delivery table makes no sound though pain is very visible on her face.
Madame
Doudou Aissatoo, a midwife in Konni, a town in Niger, tells IPS that it is
important to have reproductive health and family planning services readily
available because many women walk for miles to come to the health centres. If
commodities and services, or even midwives are unavailable, the women will
leave and not return for a very long time.
“The very
critical thing is to integrate it in the package; when a woman comes to the
health centre for whatever reason, she has to get the family planning right
away, whether it is a routine health check-up or something serious. Even on
Saturday or Sunday, if a woman comes to the health centre, she’ll get it,”
Aissatoo says.
Returning
Home to Promote Health
The
ancient story is quite fascinating; when a young boy leaves his homestead to
find greener pastures, a time will mostly likely come when the folks back home
call upon the man to become chief.
Often
leaving the diaspora to fulfil his duties, a request to become chief is one
that cannot be refused for turning it down is the equivalent to shaming ones
ancestors.
It is such
that the chiefs in Niger today come from different professional
backgrounds and many have been doctors, diplomats and professors.
Traditional
chiefs in Niger are the most important leaders — even heads of state and
presidents seek their council before making big decisions. Without their
blessing, one can assume that the road ahead will be difficult.
The UNFPA
country office has understood the role that traditional chiefs play and has
built a partnership in favour of promoting the health and rights of women.
In 2012,
the traditional chiefs of Niger signed an agreement with UNFPA furthering a
commitment to improve the health conditions of women.
“When we
gathered in 2012, we made a commitment as an organisation to work with UNFPA in
order to reduce the demographic growth, be part of sensitisation activities and
gear towards improving reproductive health,” Louche explains.
When asked
if she feels good about her husband participating in the institution, Fassouma
Manzo, a local woman replies ecstatically: “Very much!”
A round of
applause follows Manzo’s declaration as she continues, “before the School of
Husbands, men didn’t have discussions with their women; but now, there is an
issue for which they are very interested. As a woman, you can now find a space
where you can talk and share with your man. It’s a great side effect!”
Louche, a
charismatic chief who spends much time talking to his constituents truly
believes that empowering men puts the focus put on women.
The School
of Husbands doesn’t just highlight the importance of seeking professional
medical care when pregnant, but it also works to promote understanding between
men and women — a gain that will only foster harmony for both sexes.