The World Health Organization (WHO) in Jordan in collaboration with the National Women's Health Care Centre (NWHCC), conducted a national consultation on women and health in Irbid governorate on 14 October 2014. The event was part of a series of consultations being conducted in Jordan by the NWHCC, in cooperation with WHO and UN Women, since the beginning of 2014.
More than 120 participants from Irbid and Mafraq governorates attended the workshop representing various governmental and nongovernmental organizations. The main objective of the workshop was to discuss on the challenges, gaps and priorities for women’s health in different age categories (the youth, adults and the elderly).
During the opening session, H.E Dr Rouwaida Maaitah, Vice-President of the NWHCC, stressed the importance of the consultations and of hearing the views of the community on the needs, priorities and challenges forwomen’s health in the south.
“This consultation aims to renew our commitment to working towards, promoting and increasing resources to achieve gender equality and women's empowerment and human rights. The Beijing Declaration was adopted in 1995, representing the most comprehensive global agreement to empower women and achieve gender equality.” Dr Profili, WHO Representative to Jordan, stated.
Dr Profili added that during these consultations, the participants would work together, sharing experiences and views on the key issues that affect women and their role in Jordan. In particular, addressing their access to health information and appropriate, safe and affordable health services, as well identifying the social and economic factors that limit women's ability to develop themselves and access health services.
The NWHCC was established by Royal Decree in 2011, and Her Royal Highness Princess Aisha Bint Al Husseinis Chair of the board of directors. The centre is an umbrella organization for specialized health care centres in the various governorates of the Kingdom and aims to provide outreach programmes through mobile clinics and campaigns, in addition to to conducting research. As a first step, the NWHCC has established the first specialized centre for women's health care in the governorate of Tafelah, offering various services related to women's health.
The NWHCC is now launching, in collaboration with WHO, a number of activities and programmes to cover all governorates in the Kingdom and starting with awareness campaigns for women in local communities and from the Syrian refugee community in the governorates of Zarqa, Mafraq and Irbid.
The NWHCC is working in partnerships with many national and international institutions concerned with women's health to encourage healthy lifestyles and behaviours, and the provision of the necessary health care for women, and to broaden the view of the concept of women's health byshifting it from a focus on reproductive health to cover the entire health needs of all women in the various age categories.
