Policy Recommendations from The Gambia on Improving the Maternal Health System in Sub-Saharan Africa

The Gambia is ranked as one of the countries with the highest maternal death rate and the country has made great strides in improving maternal health through community-based interventions during the last ten years. The aim of this study is to assess policy recommendations from The Gambia on improving the maternal health system in sub-Saharan Africa. The specific objectives of this study were to; (i) determine the socio-demographic information of the respondents in the study area; (ii) determine policy and government interventions on maternal health; (iii) assess donor programs and interventions targeting on maternal health; (iv) determine external donor programs and interventions on maternal health; (v) determine representative of the community on maternal health. A retrospective quasi-experimental design with a well-structured questionnaire was used to obtain information from 217 participants across the major administrative regions of The Gambia, and the data were analysed using descriptive statistics. The results showed that the majority (64.8%) of respondents confirmed the existence of government policies to improve maternal health service quality, 52.9% were aware of interventions for maternal health in the study area, and UNICEF was the highest external donor (58.8%). Representatives of the community showed that 41.7% of the group of community representatives were community mobilizers/facilitators, the majority utilised services at hospitals (79.5%), and hospital-based service utilisation was primarily guided by the availability of good services and supplies (61.0%). Given that high maternal mortality rates persist in Sub-Saharan Africa, The Gambia's approach highlights the significance of inclusive, creative, and context-specific solutions.