Eminent Africans in an open letter to the African Union, have called on leaders on the African continent to take urgent actions to reduce maternal and child death. The call, which comes ahead of the AU Summit in Kampala next week, is to stimulate African leaders to step up efforts at accomplishing the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to save women and newborns. A copy of the letter forwarded to the Ghana News Agency on Saturday mentioned the signatories as including Archbishop Desmond Tutu, model and actress Liya Kabede, running star Haile Gebrselassie, and musicians Angélique Kidjo, Baaba Maal and Yvonne Chaka Chaka. They stated that they have joined forces with a number of international and regional organizations such as Oxfam, Fair Play for Africa, ONE, SAfAIDS, Water Aid and the White Ribbon Alliance to push the leaders on the continent. The signatories said world leaders signed up to the MDGs a decade ago to reduce maternal mortality by three quarters and infant mortality by two thirds by 2015, yet little has changed since. "This is a scandal for a continent whose future lies in its women and children,” the signatories said. They said more than 2000 women and 40,000 children would die needlessly in Africa from preventable illnesses, malnutrition and complications in pregnancy and childbirth during the AU Summit. They added “this AU summit may offer one of the last opportunities to get the MDGs back on track in Africa.” The signatories also called on African leaders to exceed the promise made in 2000 to spend at least 15 percent of national budget in health care. They said African leaders should also develop and implement accelerated national plans to reduce maternal, newborn and child deaths. They said the leaders should ensure health care was accessible for the poorest people and should be free for pregnant women and children under five. The signatories also asked leaders to set an example on maternal and child health for other nations meeting during the United Nations MDG Summit to take place in New York in September. Source: GNA