Johannesburg, South Africa - On 30 June 2014 the 3rd Partners' Forum for Maternal Newborn and Child Health was opened by the chair of the partnership Graça Machel.

The Partners' Forum aims to take stock of progress and accelerate action for women's and children's health, and set out a vision for the world we want beyond 2015. Co-hosted by the Government of the Republic of South Africa, Countdown to 2015, A Promise Renewed, the independent Expert Review Group and The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health (PMNCH), the Partner's Forum welcomed over 800 participants from health and non-health sectors, including representatives from countries, multilateral organizations, UN agencies, civil society and the private sector.

During the opening ceremony, two critical documents were launched: The Every Newborn Action Plan to end preventable deaths which provides a road map and joint action platform for ending preventable deaths and stillbirths; and the Countdown to 2015 tracking coverage levels for health interventions proven to reduce maternal, newborn and child mortality. It calls on governments and development partners to be accountable, identifies knowledge gaps, and proposes new actions to reach Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5, to reduce child mortality and improve maternal health.

These documents contribute "to create a social path to save every single life, nobody should be left behind. We must do more, and do better, we must push, and then push more" Graça Machel urges.

Addressing the audience, Cyril Ramaphosa, Deputy President of the Republic of South Africa highlights the critical role the health sector plays in the development agenda. "We must have a comprehensive, multisectoral approach to health, with the aim of reducing inequalities and reach equity".

"Equity is a great challenge not only in developing countries. Many African countries have made extraordinary improvements: many lives have been saved and the development community has contributed to these excellent results', states Hon. Ramaphosa.

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