Mangochi records up to 1,800 births a month in Malawi
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Malawi24
Illustrative image · Bruno Curly · Pexels · Licence PexelsMangochi District records between 1,200 and 1,800 deliveries each month, with 80 to 100 women treated daily at the district hospital. Nearly 20 newborns die there each month and the teenage pregnancy rate reaches 42%, according to The Sunday Times.
Mangochi District, Malawi, records between 1,200 and 1,800 deliveries a month, including about 60 a day at the district hospital alone, according to Ignasio Jowasi, principal nursing and midwifery officer at the Mangochi health office, cited by The Sunday Times and reported by Malawi24.
The district’s 44 health facilities providing maternity care are involved in this activity. The hospital receives between 80 and 100 pregnant women a day and treats an average of 50 newborns daily in its neonatal unit, while about 20 newborns die each month in the district, according to Jowasi.
Teenage pregnancies account for 42% of pregnancies in Mangochi, compared with 32% nationally, and about 60 teenage pregnancies were recorded in the district in September. Mangochi and Mzimba North are piloting a scheme for pregnant teenagers, funded by the French embassy and led by the Ministry of Health with technical support from Nutrition International; the project is due to continue until July 2027 in 22 of the 44 facilities concerned.
The shortage of midwives remains another source of pressure. Health and Sanitation Minister Madalitso Baloyi, herself a midwife, had spent a night on duty in the hospital’s maternity ward in July and recorded 48 deliveries in 24 hours, with patients sharing beds or sleeping on the floor and in corridors. The facility has 110 midwives across eight sections, compared with an estimated need of about 300, according to Malawi24.
