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It is December 10th - Human Rights Day! This is the final day of the special SoroptiVoice blog series, bringing you stories from Papua New Guinea, where this year's President's December 10th Appeal is taking place.  These stories paint a poignant picture of what life is like for women in PNG, with a focus on pregnancy and mothers.  There are many SI activities and materials for International Human Rights Day & this year's SI focus on women's right to safe motherhood, in particular access to skilled birth attendants.  Please explore our website and social media sites to learn more and to find out how you can take action too!    

Jenny’s story

Jenny is a teacher in a small village Lower Primary School in the Ramu valley.  Her two-roomed school, which receives church and Government funding, has nearly a hundred students on the roll.  Jenny runs a bilingual programme for the youngest children, gradually introducing them to English, the language of instruction in schools throughout Papua New Guinea.  The male Head Teacher also teaches the other class.

Jenny can be seen here translating the Birthing in the Pacific leaflet for some of the village women.  The SI Ramu Club is organising an up-skilling course for Village Birthing Attendants (VBAs) and Community Health Workers in Ramu, so there is much interest in the course. Although many people in the village can speak English, most are illiterate.

The pregnant women in Jenny’s village are fortunate as they live close to a main road and live not far from the Gusap Health Centre.  However, throughout the mountainous areas of the long river valley in which Ramu sits, few women have such easy access to Health Centres, Clinics or Aid Posts.  70% of women rely on Traditional Birthing Attendants(VBAs), mothers and relatives to attend the birth of their babies.