According to research, the South Africa’s infant mortality rate has been decreasing for almost two decades. It has dropped by 32% between 2002 and 2017.
The improvement is attributed to a sharp increase in the rate of antenatal first visits by pregnant women. The findings were featured in the 2018 South Africa Survey and published by the Institute of Race Relation (IRR).
Speaking on Morning Live, IRR analyst Tawanda Makombo says that the sudden change is caused by the education that is being given to women by the department of health is vital.
“Each woman must know that it’s important to go and see a health practitioner when you are pregnant,” says the analyst.
Makombo says that the study which was conducted consisted of both urban and rural population, “We obtained our statistics from the department of health and Statistics SA.”
Click the video for full interview
