Midwives set for course in London

JAKARTA (JP): The government has selected 30 nurse instructors from four colleges in Indonesia to undergo training at the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) in London.

The World Bank-funded education program is part of the government's drive to reduce the maternal and infant mortality rates in the country, Minister of Health Sujudi said on Wednesday after briefing the 30 participants.

The government plans to reduce the maternal death rate from 420 to 225 per 100,000 births by the middle of the current Five- year Development Plan which began last year.

"By then, the number of midwives serving all villages throughout the country will reach 54,000," he said.

The midwife teachers were selected from four nursing colleges in Jakarta, Surabaya (East Java), Bandung (West Java) and Ujung Pandang (South Sulawesi).

The midwives have undergone training in the Jakarta Central Hospital for the last four weeks. (05)