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Munira Shaʻban

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Munira Shaʻban is a Jordanian midwife who pioneered education on family planning and maternal health in Jordan.

Life

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Sha'ban began studying nursing when she was 15 years old. Later on, she specialized in midwifery. She continued her studies in London; when she returned to Jordan, she pioneered the family planning education in the country. She co-wrote a textbook for new midwives, trained others and gave lectures on midwifery. She also helped develop an ethics for midwives.[1]

Sha'ban, affectionately known as Mama Munira,[2] was the first midwife working in the Zaatari refugee camp.[3] She worked through the Jordan Health Aid, on a UNFPA mission.[3] In 2014, she took part in a high-level event at the Headquarters of the United Nations, invited by the then-general secretary Ban Ki-moon, to explain and talk about her work on maternal health and family planning in Jordan and the surrounding region.[3] Other participants included former Tanzanian president Jakaya Kikwete.[3] Munira Sha'ban has also taken part in a televised health show.[4]

After retiring, she has supported and counseled Syrian pregnant refugees.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b Luchsinger, Gretchen; Jensen, Janet; Jensen, Lois; Ottolini, Cristina (2019). Icons & Activists. 50 years of people making change (PDF). New York: UNFPA. p. 64. ISBN 978-0-89714-044-7.
  2. ^ "Jordan's most famous nurse brings hope to Syrian refugees". UN News. 6 October 2014. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d "Leaders pledge to help end preventable maternal, newborn and child deaths within a generation". www.unfpa.org. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  4. ^ "Bearing witness to a revolution in women's health and rights". www.unfpa.org. Retrieved 5 April 2021.