Endorsed by the 194 member-states of the World Health Assembly in May 2014, the Every Newborn Action Plan aims to enhance and support coordinated and comprehensive planning and implementation of newborn-specific actions within the context of national reproductive, maternal, newborn, child, and adolescent health (RMNCAH) strategies and action plans. It supports the recommendations of the UN Commission on Life-Saving Commodities for Women and Children, A Promise Renewed commitment to child survival, and the objectives of Family Planning 2020. It also outlines a common monitoring framework informed by the recommendations of the Commission on Information and Accountability for Women’s and Children’s Health.
This document launches 40 new commitments to Every Woman Every Child in support of the Every Newborn Action Plan. Diverse stakeholders, including governments, non-governmental organizations, businesses, research and academia, and professional organizations, are now committing to accelerate their efforts to decrease the number of newborn and stillbirth deaths.
Taken together, these commitments represent one of the most significant contributions on newborns to the Every Woman Every Child movement since it was launched in 2010, with additional commitments expected at the UN General Assembly meeting in September of 2014.
Dedicating financial resources towards meeting the needs and saving the lives of newborns and preventing stillbirths is one important step that partners can take to improve the lives of children around the world. Other crucial contributions include training additional birth attendants, strengthening the capacity of health systems to respond to emergencies, and ensuring that life-saving interventions are available even to the most remote populations. Continuing to build strategic and multi-stakeholder partnerships will help scale-up interventions and bring services to the most marginalized, while research and innovation are essential to constantly improve and find new, creative ways to save lives.
All of us can take responsibility today to use our collective resources to end preventable newborn deaths and stillbirths and transform the futures of communities and therefore nations. For more information, please visit: www.everywomaneverychild.org. To make a commitment to Every Woman Every Child, please email: everywoman.everychild@un.org.