Department for International Development (DFID)

With support from DFID, Pakistan’s government recently launched the national Maternal, Newborn and Child Health program which will train 12,000 more midwives in the next five years. Central to the success the national Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Program (MNCH) will be the creation of a cadre of trained community midwives.

For DFID, health is a key priority of its current five-year plan for working in Pakistan. Already the lead donor in this sector, DFID is committed to doing more, particularly on mother and child health. DFID funding for the MNCH Program will enable more schools to open throughout the country, allowing 12,000 more midwives to be trained and ready to work over the next five years. To ensure that aspiring midwives from poor backgrounds are not held back by money concerns, the government has issued stipends of 3,500 Rupees (£25).