In the remote region of Walikale, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) teams serve as a vital lifeline for women with high-risk pregnancies.

Each month, around 30 women embark on long, often treacherous journeys—many on foot—to reach Walikale general reference hospital. They are driven by the hope of a safe delivery for their new baby.

For Dr. Séraphin Kikwabantu, the head of the hospital's gynecology-maternity department, this work is deeply personal. “My mother died of a postpartum hemorrhage because there was no hospital where we lived,” he shares. “That loss drove me to become a doctor, to help women and save mothers.”

Discover why reproductive health care is a crucial pillar of MSF’s emergency medical response in DRC and around the world.
 

Access to sexual and reproductive health care in DRC is severely limited. Decades of instability, compounded by recent violence, have shattered an already fragile health system. Chronic underfunding has left many without essential care, contributing to one of the world’s highest maternal and neonatal mortality rates.

In Walikale, with few nearby health centers and care often financially out of reach, many mothers are left with nowhere to turn. Pregnant mothers in critical condition are forced to make dangerous journeys on foot to reach the help they need—sadly, some never make it. 

At the hospital’s maternity unit, MSF teams are working to close those gaps in maternity care—more than 440 babies are born there each month, and in 2023, a total of 5,070 deliveries were carried out in MSF-supported facilities in Walikale territory.

To further support expecting mothers, MSF provides temporary housing and specialized care in the “village d’accueil” or “host village.” By having the women stay in advance of their expected due date, complications can be reduced, mitigating the risk of death for both mother and baby. Since it opened five years ago, this village has hosted and cared for around 1,800 women.

Every mother deserves a safe pregnancy and delivery. See how MSF is making a lifesaving difference in DRC and beyond.
 

Thank you for making this critical work possible and for supporting maternal health care providers around the world.

Sincerely,

Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)

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