This blog was provided by the COVID-19 All-Africa Action Network
Lilongwe, October 2020: Malawi President Lazarus Chakwera has appointed Ms Dorothy Gillian Ngoma, a Nurse-Midwife and Community Health Specialist, as Special Advisor to the President of Malawi on issues related to maternal mortality and reproductive health.
A former President and General Secretary of the National Organization of Nurses and Midwives of Malawi (NOMN) and an AAN Founding Member, Ms Ngoma was also National Coordinator and Adviser for Safe Motherhood for Malawi President Dr Joyce Banda from 2012 -2014. In that role, she led an ambitious construction programme of 15 maternity waiting homes for pregnant rural women. Dorothy was also a senior lecturer for Kamuzu College of Nursing for 20 years and Vice-Principal of the same college for six years.
“Though my assignment is quite open, it includes ensuring that safe motherhood issues are on the political agenda of this government and have strong political support at the highest level so that the maternal mortality rate continues to decrease and Malawi ensures healthy mothers for a healthy tomorrow. I also look forward to working with the First Lady’s office on protecting girl children from early marriages and early pregnancies and keeping them longer in school.“ stated Dorothy Ngoma.
Statement from AAN Network Co-Chairs Judith A Oulton & Michael Vitols
“Dorothy Ngoma is a strong, fearless advocate who continues her fight for quality nursing care and safe motherhood rights for Malawian women as well as reproductive health for all women and girls.”
The COVID-19 Africa Action Network for Nurses & Nurse-Midwives (AAN) is a global, all-volunteer group of health care professionals, working to support nurses & nurse-midwives fighting the COVID-19 pandemic in Eswatini, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Rwanda, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.
For further information please contact AAN Co-Chair, Linda Carrier-Walker lcw@carrierwalker.ch
