why women are forced to deliver on the road

why women are forced to deliver on the road

After a daylong under the scotching sun, it’s time for a walk along the dilapidated Kibao- Kiche Shika-Adabu road to the nearby river Mnazi mmoja for a shower.

All seems too well, a few meters down the river a group of about five women can be seen, beside them a man with a wheel barrow. By the look of things, it is mission impossible.

Minutes later, a sharp voice of a baby is heard amidst them; the wheelbarrow was actually the only available ambulance to Rabai Health Center about 17 kilometers away. The expectant mother has had to fortunately deliver her baby on the way, and now the baby girl will be called “Menjira” - a Mijikenda name meaning she was born by the roadside.

Such scenarios are not new to Jimba residents of Rabai District in Kilifi County. There are no health facilities in the area, which is essentially an island surrounded by seasonal rivers which make the area inaccessible during the rainy season.

According to residents, it is unbearable during the rainy season as roads can hardly be used as they have never been carpeted since independence. This has forced many expectant women to rely on mid wives during delivery.

Kanze Munga, commonly known here as Mechibega, is among the famous midwives not only in Jimba but also in the neighboring villages in Rabai and Kisurutini locations.

“We have adapted to these problems…As women, we lack privacy as some are forced to deliver their babies on their way to hospitals located across the river. I have been called many times in the middle of the night to go and help an expectant mother at her home,” she says.

Munga, who has never been trained on this trade, expresses confidence of being capable to assess the condition of a baby in their mother’s womb just as is done at the modern clinic, an art that has made her famous in her area.

Many women known as “experts” in assisting in delivery the traditional way, have the quest to help and have a new baby born without considering the health risk they expose themselves to as things like clinical gloves are unavailable.

Munga revealed that once she was advised by the area Assistant Chief to keep records of all the children born and take the same to the nearest dispensary at a later date  for recording before advising the mother to make arrangement for the new born to be registered at the Chiefs office.

“I did not have a chance to step into a class room, before the idea to use my grandsons to record the date and sex of the new born; I had a bottle where after a successful delivery if the baby is a boy I used to put a bean seed in the bottle and a maize seed for a baby girl. This made it possible for any person who wished to know the number of children and gender born here,” revealed Mechibega.

She added that early last year, through the Provincial Administration, they went to Kombeni dispensary, which is the nearest, 7 km away to get induction from health officers on how to handle the new born babies.

To show just how bad the situation is, Munga reveals that she has had to use plastic bags instead of the recommended clinical gloves in many situations as the latter are not available.

“I intend to visit the dispensary as there is one child who is yet to have the name recorded. I will ask the officers if they can give me the gloves instead of handling them with my bare hands.” she revealed.

According to her records, when we visited her in mid March, about ten children had seen the world through Kanze’s efforts of which six are girls and four boys.

Mama Kanze Munga, demonstrate how she uses plastic bags in assisting fellow women in home delivery

Meet Joyce Yaa. She is one among the trained community health workers who at least has knowledge of how safely she can handle and expectant woman.

At every place she is always carrying a bag one can simply mistake with the usual hand bags carried by ladies.

“I am forced to carry all the equipment I use for delivery, because you cannot tell where you are going to meet an expectant mother ready to deliver. I have on several occasions helped fellow women deliver on the road side. That’s why I have to arm myself with the necessary equipment all the time,” Yaa asserts confidently.

She revealed that with the help of AMREF, she acquired training as a community health worker with three other women from Jimba area and graduated about 17 years ago. Already one of her colleagues has passed on.

Yaa stresses that the poor infrastructure in Jimba has worsened the situation as the currently common means of transport - motor bikes - are not safe for an expectant women. She says these can easily kill the baby on transit to the health facility.

She revealed that her efforts in partnership with other women in the area to start a women group to  sustain themselves as well as bring medical services near to the community is yet to yield  fruits.

“We formed a women group by the name Jeza Zhomu (Mijikenda for Try Hard) over 20 years ago with the aim of bringing services to our locality but we only managed to solve the water problem,” she said.

She noted that the health sector and the infrastructure is still wanting and soon it will come a reality.

Jimba stretches to about 13square kilometer

with a population of about 5,600 people according to 2009 census. It’s an area surrounded by two rivers at both sides of the road and when it rains the rivers normally cut communication due to flooding thus affecting learning and all other activities in the area.

Depite the Kibao-kiche/Shika-Adabu road that cuts across one of the river at Darajani being a classified road E932, nothing has been done to carpet the road or construct a bridge. This is causing sleepless nights to the residents because life is hard even during the dry season.

The poor state of road is now attracting insecurity cases particularly at night where incidents of cattle theft have been reported on several occasions.

Section of Kibaokiche-Shika Ababu road at Darajani

Area Assistant Chief, Isaac Mkando, admitted that medical facilities in Jimba, which he said is land locked, are essential as many risk their lives through the use of traditional healers since hospitals are out of reach especially at night.

However, he insists that there is positive change as maternal mortality rate and infant mortality rate are now lower despite the many home deliveries witnessed in the area, especially at night.

“The distance where the health facilities are located makes many to opt for traditional healers, especially due to high poverty levels in our area. Despite campaign on the importance of modern clinic among expectant mother nothing much may be achieved as the facilities are out of reach for many particularly during emergency. At least we can now record less than five mortality death in a year.” revealed Mkando.

He revealed that earlier mortality deaths were regularly recorded as due to lack of awareness and understanding among the locals.

Mkando noted that many of the elite population prefer to stay away from the region particularly when they are about to deliver for fear of the condition they likely to face due to lack of medical facilities.

“Most of Jimba residents prefer to stay with their spouse in the urban area where they are working to access proper medical facilities especially during delivery. We used to lose almost half of the population delivered at home.” He revealed

The administrator called on well-wishers and the state to consider the construction of at least a dispensary in the area and revealed that already a proposal had been forwarded to the Rabai District Development Committee for the same.

But unless this is done, the women of Jimba/Rabai will continue to suffer, especially during deliveries.

End