2023 International Maternal Newborn Health Conference

When

11 May 2023

Where

Cape Town, South Africa

Summary

Nearly 1,800 stakeholders from over 95 countries came together at the first biennial International Maternal Newborn Health Conference (IMNHC) to propose solutions to improve maternal newborn health and prevent stillbirths. At the conference, FFI’s Director presented as part of the panel titled “Food Fortification with Folic Acid to Prevent Life-threatening Birth Defects Worldwide,” and FFI staff co-presented a poster titled “National Mandatory Grain Fortification Legislation Decreases Anemia Prevalence Among Non-Pregnant Women of Reproductive Age: Findings from Multiple Demographic and Health Surveys.”

During the panel, Vijaya Kancherla, PhD, provided an overview of the status of global prevention of spina bifida and anencephaly. Homero Martinez, PhD, discussed the prevention of NTDs by improving folate status through large-scale food fortification from a global perspective. Jeffrey Blount, MD, discussed the need for global partnerships in promoting primary prevention of NTDs. Scott Montgomery, FFI Director, discussed FFI’s approach to providing technical guidance to countries to implement large-scale food fortification.

As part of FFI’s poster presentation, staff shared the findings of a study that investigated whether mandatory national grain fortification policies reduce the prevalence of anemia among non-pregnant women of reproductive age (WRA). The study's results found significant reductions in anemia prevalence in WRA in countries with mandatory grain fortification compared to those without.

Resources

Conference Abstracts