Sign of Life is a movement creating awareness and political commitment for the potential of African girls. The background to this campaign are the Millennium Development Goals.
Reduce maternal mortality
In 2000 world leaders adopted the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). MDG5 aims to reduce maternal mortality by 75% before 2015 (in comparison to 1990). And also, to reach the target of universal access to reproductive health for all (for example contraception and health care during pregnancy and delivery).
Contraception not available
Unfortunately, the reality is that progress has been very slow. Still, every year 350,000 women die of pregnancy-related causes, 90% of which in developing countries. In those countries, pregnancy is cause of death no.1 for girls between 15-19 years of age. Sadly, this is due to a lack of knowledge on how to prevent pregnancy; contraception is not available for them, and neither is medical care including safe abortion services.
Create awareness
The aim of the campaign is to create public and political awareness for MDG5, focusing on the plight of young women in Africa and their sexual en reproductive health and rights. The six European countries involved in the campaign are: Denmark (Sex og Samfund); Germany (DSW); The Netherlands (Rutgers WPF); Lithuania (FPSHA); Estonia (ESHA) and Latvia (LAPSH)
More information
The campaign is partly funded by the European Union. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of the European Commission.
