Skilled birth attendance (SBA) and essential obstetric care (EOC) are key strategies for reducing maternal and newborn mortality and morbidity globally. Lack of adequately trained competent staff is a key barrier to achieving this. We assessed the effectiveness of a new package of 'Life Saving Skills - Essential Obstetric and Newborn Care Training' (LSS-EOC and NC) designed specifically around the UN signal functions in seven countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Among 600 healthcare providers (nurse-midwives, doctors, clinical officers and specialists), knowledge about the diagnosis and management of complications of pregnancy and childbirth as well as newborn care significantly increased (p < 0.001). There was measurable improvement in skills (p < 0.001), and participants expressed a high level of satisfaction with the training. The training package was found to meet the needs of healthcare providers, increased awareness of the need for evidence-based care and encouraged teamwork.

To assess the availability of, and challenges to the provision of emergency obstetric care in order to raise awareness and assist policy-makers and development partners in making appropriate decisions to help pregnant women in Iraq. Descriptive and exploratory study based on self-administered questionnaires, an in-depth interview and a Focus Group Discussion. The setting was 19 major hospitals in 8 out of the 18 Governorates and the participants were 31 Iraqi doctors and 1 midwife. The outcome measures were availability of emergency obstetric care (EOC) in hospitals and challenges to the provision of EOC. Only 26.3% (5/19) of hospitals had been able to provide all the 8 signal functions of comprehensive emergency obstetric care in the previous 3 months. All the 19 hospitals provided parenteral antibiotics and uterine evacuation, 94.7% (18/19) were able to provide parenteral oxytocics and perform manual removal of retained placenta, magnesium sulphate for eclampsia was available in 47.4% (9/19) of hospitals, 42.1% (8/19) provided assisted vaginal delivery, 26.5% (5/19) provided blood transfusion and 89.5% (17/19) offered Caesarean section. The identified challenges for health care providers include difficulties travelling to work due to frequent checkpoints and insecurity, high level of insecurity for patients referred or admitted to hospitals, inadequate staffing due mainly to external migration and premature deaths as a result of the war, lack of drugs, supplies and equipment (including blood for transfusion), and falling standards of training and regulation. Most women and their families do not currently have access to comprehensive emergency obstetric care. Health care providers recommend reconstruction and strengthening of all components of the Iraqi health system which may only be achieved if security returns to the country.

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The UN Secretariat provides annual statistics on allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse made against peacekeeping personnel, with reduced numbers of allegations leading to claims of success for the UN's ‘zero tolerance’ policy. This article explores the use of data as ‘technologies’ of global governance, to examine the function that these annual statistics serve for the UN and the impact that they have on calls for legal reform. Thus far, the statistics have attracted little academic appraisal. Yet, they have been used to establish the UN's authority to resolve the ‘problem’ of sexual exploitation and abuse, diminishing the space for critique of UN policy and undermining the quest for improved legal arrangements.