Health Minister Demby Makes Case For Maternal Health Funding At UNGA Side Event in New York

NEW YORK – Minister of Health Dr. Austin Demby has told world leaders and global financiers that Sierra Leone is moving away from aid dependency towards measurable, results-based investment in healthcare, with a focus on ending preventable deaths of mothers and children.

Dr. Demby was speaking at the Global Leaders Network (GLN) Financial Diplomacy Series, a high-level ministerial working session held on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York.

The session, co-hosted by the GLN, the Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (PMNCH) and the Centre for Global Health Diplomacy, brought together Ministers of Health and Finance from Sierra Leone, Liberia, Kenya and South Africa, alongside development finance institutions, philanthropies and partners from South Korea, Australia, Canada, Indonesia and Timor-Leste.

Presenting Sierra Leone’s priorities, Dr. Demby focused on the government’s flagship health campaign – the Triple Zeros: zero preventable maternal deaths, zero preventable child deaths and zero zero-dose children – under the 300 Days of Activism drive.

According to the Ministry of Health, Sierra Leone has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world, estimated at 443 deaths per 100,000 live births according to the latest WHO data, with under-five child mortality still above 100 per 1,000 births.

The Triple Zero campaign, launched earlier this year, aims to track every pregnancy in real time using location-based data so no mother or baby is left behind.

“We are not just asking for investment. We are showing the return on that investment in the lives we save,” Dr. Demby said.

He explained that the Ministry is now using digital health data to follow pregnancies from antenatal to postnatal care, allowing government and partners to measure impact directly – a shift he said should inspire more sustainable financing instead of traditional donor aid.

The New York discussions also looked at three other big issues for Africa: local manufacturing of vaccines and essential medicines to reduce reliance on imports, building a resilient health workforce, and transitioning health facilities to clean and reliable energy.

Health experts say the event is important for Sierra Leone, which still relies heavily on external funding for over 30 percent of its health budget, as government pushes President Julius Maada Bio’s Big Five Game Changers agenda where human capital development – including health – is a key pillar.

Dr. Demby, who holds a PhD in public health and has served as Minister since 2021, is part of Sierra Leone’s delegation to UNGA 81, where Sierra Leone is also lobbying for support for its campaign against child marriage and global health security reforms.