By the African UnionIn May 2009, the campaign on accelerated reduction of maternal mortality in Africa (CARMMA) was
first launched. It was an initiative of the African Union Commission (AUC) that aimed to curb the
continentally high pregnancy-related deaths. The campaign’s objective was to promote and advocate
for renewed and intensified implementation of the 2006 Maputo Plan of Action (MPoA) to reduce
maternal, newborn, and child mortality by improving health outcomes for African women and children.
The CARMMA campaign was designed to use policy dialogue, advocacy, and community mobilization to
enlist political commitment and increase resources and societal change in support of Maternal,
Newborn, and Child Health (MNCH).In 2019, the African Union Commission evaluated the CARMMA campaign to determine its relevance,
appropriateness, effectiveness, efficiency, impact, and sustainability. The evaluation revealed that
member states that embraced the campaign at the highest political levels made significant
improvements in their Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child, and Adolescent Health (RMNCAH)
indicators. The overall analysis of the campaign from its evaluation indicated that CARMMA is still
relevant in Africa.With the same regard, the Commission through the Department of Health, Humanitarian Affairs, and
Social Development developed a new roadmap and its accountability partnership framework for restrengthening the campaign, which has been endorsed by the AU Policy Organs towards 2022. The
next phase of implementation of the CARMMA Plus 2021 -2030 will focus on the unfinished
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) health agenda for women, new-borns, children and adolescents
where birthed the “Plus to CARMMA” to be entitled CARMMA Plus. Similarly, it will take into account
Africa’s transformative Agenda 2063, the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the revised
African Health Strategy 2016-2030, and the revised Maputo Plan of Action (2016-2030) for women
and children as well as the AU continental Strategy on education for health and wellbeing of young
people.