Jagran Pehel partners with UNICEF, Lucknow

Partnership for a project entitled “Advocacy Campaign for Neo-Natal Care and Survival” in Uttar Pradesh

January 13, 2012:

In 2010- 2011, Jagran Pehel - the strategic social initiative division of the leading media house Jagran Prakashan Limited initiated a partnership with UNICEF office for Uttar Pradesh – Lucknow -  a project entitled “Advocacy Campaign for Neo-Natal Care and Survival” in Uttar Pradesh. The interventions carried out under this partnership were implemented in 17 districts of Uttar Pradesh viz: Jhansi, Aligarh, Pratapgarh, Azamgarh, Moradabad, Siddharth Nagar, Banda, Bahraich, Faizabad, Gorakhpur, Kannauj, Lakhimpur Khar, Bulandshar, Shahjanpur, Saharanpur, Varanasi and Mirzapur.

The neonatal mortality rate in Uttar Pradesh is 50 per 1,000 live births (Annual Health Survey Report Bulletin, Census 2011). It is estimated that in Uttar Pradesh, 55, 80, 300 births take place every year. This means that there are 2, 67, 850 newborns that die every year, 22, 320 newborns die per month, 740 newborns per day, 31 newborns per hour or 1 newborn every 2 minutes in Uttar Pradesh. Most of these deaths can be prevented. Concerted efforts through measures such as improving the quality of reproductive health services, antenatal care, ensuring skilled birth attendance at delivery, increasing access to newborn care when necessary and education to foster healthy practices for newborns are effective measures to address newborn care and prevent high neonatal mortality.

Anand Madhab, National Head of Jagran Pehel stated that apart from the mass mobilization, more than 900 stakeholders including key government officials, representatives from the Civil Society Organizations, local leaders of the community, media representatives were sensitized across these districts. Intervention under this partnership catalyzed a dialogue on neo-natal care issues as a major concern for a state like UP, where 1 child die in every two minutes.

With this encouraging precedence, Jagran Pehel has entered a new phase of partnership with UNICEF Field Office for Uttar Pradesh on the 11th of January 2012. The proposed multimedia campaign is intended to scale up the interventions in 11 districts of UP with intensive interventions in Varanasi and Moradabad.

While signing the partnership agreement, Anand Madhab, National Head, Jagran Pehel reiterated Jagran Group's commitment towards the issue of neo natal care and assured all desired support through different media vehicles to reach out to the community and decision makers in project districts.

Adele Khudr. Chief of UNICEF Field Office in Uttar Pradesh expressed her satisfaction in partnersing with a media house like Jagran on issues related to child health. She was hopeful that the proposed interventions under this partnership would take these initiatives to the different stakeholders through leveraging effects of mass media use.

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