Population, Health and Nutrition
Trained counselors provide family planning advice to women at Sun Quality Health clinics in Nepal. USAID-supported Sun Quality Health, provides free counseling services and subsidized family planning products that are affordable for low-income communities.
USAID HEALTH PROGRAMS
Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Burma, Cambodia, China, East Timor, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Jordan, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Vietnam, West Bank/Gaza and Yemen
CONTACTS
Gary Cook
Senior Health Advisor
Tel: (202) 712-0707
Email: gcook@usaid.gov
Overview
About half of the world's maternal and child deaths take place in the Asia and the Near East (ANE) region. HIV/AIDS is a growing threat and tuberculosis, malaria, and avian influenza remain a critical concern.
Programs
USAID is working with partners to improve health services and systems, update policies, train health staff, and conduct research to further improve health. USAID is also supporting equitable quality health care in both the public and private sectors in many of the region's countries.
Keeping Mothers and their Children Well
About half of mothers worldwide who die from pregnancy-related complications are in the ANE region, one quarter in India alone. The rate of South Asian women dying of pregnancy-related causes is thirty-six times higher than it is in industrialized countries. Having a skilled attendant at birth saves mothers' lives, so USAID works to increase the number of midwives and other health care workers, training them to handle normal and emergency deliveries.
About half of child deaths in the region occur during the first 28 days of life. USAID trains health care workers in safe and clean delivery and tetanus immunization to prevent infant deaths. About two-thirds of child deaths are due to preventable disease like diarrhea. To address other childhood killers, USAID educates communities about hygienic practices, promotes immunization and expands basic health services.
Saving Lives With Family Planning
Between 1975 and 2000, the region's total population increased from 1.2 billion to nearly 2 billion, not including China. USAID's continuing investment in improving access to and quality of family planning services has paid off by enabling couples to choose whether, when and how often to have children. Spacing births saves the lives of mothers and infants and improves quality of life. With nearly half the region's population under the age of 25, and wanting family planning services, expanding sustainable services is critical.
Fighting HIV/AIDS and Other Infectious Diseases
There are an estimated 8.8 million people with HIV in Asia and the Near East with rapidly expanding epidemics in China, India, Indonesia, Burma Papua New Guinea, and Vietnam. The United States has made a five-year, $15 billion commitment to fight HIV/AIDS globally and Vietnam is one of 15 focus countries for this program. ANE has over 5 million new tuberculosis cases each year, the most of any region in the world, and Southeast Asia currently faces at least 3-4 million annual cases of malaria, including deadly strains that are resistant to almost all available medicines. USAID educates at-risk populations to prevent the spread of HIV and other infectious diseases and increases access to quality testing and treatment services.
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