Being #OnHerSide means closing the gap between the innovations that exist and the women and children who need them. 

Over the last two decades, African countries have made real progress in protecting mothers and children, cutting maternal mortality by nearly 40% since 2000. Yet the numbers tell a harder story. Africa carries this burden disproportionately, accounting for 70% of global maternal deaths. In fact, every single day, about 488 mothers and 2,740 newborns die in the African Region, many from causes that are entirely preventable. The same gap in access runs through reproductive health. Contraceptive options have expanded, but close to 32 million women in Africa still have an unmet demand for contraception, while studies in sub-Saharan Africa estimate that more than one in five married women still have an unmet need for family planning. 

A range of tools and interventions exists, from simple and low-cost ones to novel and innovative technologies, all of which can dramatically improve access, affordability and efficacy. To reach the global goal for maternal survival by 2030, Africa needs a 12-fold increase in the annual rate of reduction in maternal mortality.  

Our message is clear: Africa already has many of the tools to save women and children. Now they must be financed, procured and delivered in time to reach the people whose lives depend on them. In fact, every US$1 invested in maternal and newborn health is estimated to yield up to US$20 in return. Acting now is both a moral obligation and a smart investment. 

It means making sure that a pregnant woman can receive antenatal care, with ultrasounds and other tools that detect risk early. It means that when a woman starts bleeding after childbirth, medicines that slow the bleeding are already in the room. It means that small and sick newborns can receive antibiotics to fight infections, oxygen to help them breathe, and breathing support when their lungs are not yet strong enough to work on their own. It means that a woman can access contraception before an unintended pregnancy changes the course of her life. It means health workers have the supplies, training, referral systems and ability to act in time. 

Through this declaration, we stand by these beliefs: 

• No mother should die giving life, and no newborn should be lost to causes we know how to prevent. 

• Every woman and child deserves quality care at every stage of life. 

• Every woman deserves access to clear information, respectful counselling and a full range of contraceptive options. 

• Being #OnHerSide means her survival is everyone’s responsibility, and through her, families, communities and economies are stronger. 

We call on decision makers to place the health of women and children at the centre of every agenda and every conversation. 

We call for greater investments, whether through domestic resources, external aid or innovative financing, to close the funding gap. 

We call for proven interventions, innovations and tools to be taken to scale, with sufficient funding, stronger supply chains, quality assurance and trained health workers so that every woman and child can be reached in time. 

We call on men and fathers, who are key decision-makers in many households, to walk beside women through contraception, pregnancy, birth, the postpartum period and a newborn’s first months of life. 

We call on faith and community leaders, who are among Africa’s most trusted voices, to break the silence and stigma that keep women and girls from care. 

Lastly, we call for the health of women and children to be recognized as foundational to health itself, and for no health agenda to be considered complete while their needs, choices and survival remain underfunded or out of reach. 

Together, we will make women’s and children’s health a test of Africa’s leadership. We will measure progress by whether girls can grow up in safety, women can make informed choices, mothers can survive childbirth, newborns can receive the care, medicines and tools they need to live, and children can thrive. 

Add your name and stand #OnHerSide. 

The health of women and children is the ground on which families, communities and nations are built. It belongs at the centre of Africa’s future.