A free maternal health policy was implemented under Ghana’s National Health Insurance Scheme to promote the use of maternal health services. Under the policy, women are entitled to free services throughout pregnancy and at childbirth. A mixed methods study involving women, providers and insurance managers was carried out in the Kassena-Nankana municipality of Ghana. It explored the afordability, availability, acceptability and quality of services.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the most common cause of bronchiolitis in infants. Maternal immunization is an option to increase maternal antibody levels and protect infants from infection. Here we assess the efficacy of virus-like particle (VLP) vaccine candidates containing stabilized pre-fusion (pre-F) or post-fusion (post-F) conformations of the RSV F protein and the attachment RSV G protein in a maternal immunization model using cotton rats. VLP vaccines containing RSV F and G proteins strongly boost pre-existing RSV immunity in dams preventing their perinatal drop in immunity.

Sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) are essential for sustainable development because of their links to gender equality and women’s wellbeing, their impact on maternal, newborn, child, and adolescent health, and their roles in shaping future economic development and environmental sustainability. Yet progress towards fulfilling SRHR for all has been stymied because of weak political commitment, inadequate resources, persistent discrimination against women and girls, and an unwillingness to address issues related to sexuality openly and comprehensively.

Household air pollution (HAP) is the eighth leading risk factor for global disease burden, contributing to 2.9 million yearly premature deaths. Nearly 80% of the sub-Saharan population and about 90 million households in Nigeria use biomass as their primary fuel for cooking and energy needs, which can adversely impact their health. Exposure to air pollution has been linked to adverse pregnancy outcomes like stillbirth, preeclampsia, preterm birth, low birth weight, reduced fetal head circumference, miscarriage, and intra-uterine fetal growth retardation (IUGR).

Health programmes that are using mobile phones to improve maternal health in rural India are examined. Presented by its promoters as a universal, accessible and “smart” empowering technology, how mobile devices transform gender inequalities on the ground is analysed. By using empirical data collected on a global mHealth programme deployed in Bihar, how mHealth devices negate the multifactorial dimension of gender and health inequalities is explained, and also how these devices can reinforce inequalities on the ground is examined.