I see myself as the voice of Africa within the UN. My office, the Office of the Special Adviser on Africa, assists the Secretary General in bringing … - Bience Gawanas

Once you focus on reducing maternal mortality you have to address poverty by making healthcare accessible to pregnant women by making healthcare free,” she said adding that the lack of integrated policies creates a situation where various ministries work in conflict with each other. She suggests that the only way to overcome this is by advocating for a stronger social policy framework

I was appointed to this office a year ago when the UN was going through major reforms in the peace and security pillar, development pillar, as well as in management. At the same time, the AU was also going through institutional reforms. So it is quite obvious that we had to reposition ourselves. My priority is to make sure that the office remains relevant, effective, efficient and impactful in our role and mandate. I am the first woman to occupy the position of special adviser on Africa, I see myself as a groundbreaker in the UN system, and therefore I must ensure that the concerns of women and youth are also my priorities.

“Therefore, we need a social policy framework for Namibia to create a micro policy, social environment where social policies speak to one another in a more coordinated and coherent manner,