Tangerang curbs maternal, infant mortality rates

Tangerang mayor Wahidin Halim claimed Wednesday his administration's success in curbing maternal and infant mortality rates and increasing the number of family planning program acceptors in the last few years.

“This is the fruit of the administration’s efforts to improve the quality of human resources and public welfare through educational, health and infrastructural development programs,” Wahidin said when launching the Healthy Mother Movement at his office.
 
He said the public’s awareness of the programs had contributed a lot to the achievements.

The mayor said the success had given a boost to the local economic growth that resulted in an increase in the people’s per capita income, welfare and quality health.  

Head of the municipal Empowerment and Family Planning Agency (BPMKB) Abduh Surahman said the Healthy Mother Movement program was aimed at supporting efforts to improve the quality of the city’s human resources.
 
“The program is expected to raise awareness of community members, especially pregnant and breast-feeding mothers, of healthy life in a bid to lower maternal and infant mortality rates,” he said.

The city’s maternal mortality rate dropped from 24 in 2008 to 12 in 2009. Over the same period the infant mortality rate was down from 89 to 59 and the number of family planning program acceptors grew by 209 percent.