Rethinking the role of Traditional Birth Attendants in South Africa as a Socio-economic Development Strategy: Maximizing the lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic

Health is a fundamental condition for achieving a high-quality population. As a result, there has been a growing emphasis on health innovation as a strategic policy tool for nation-building. It is undisputed that the COVID-19 pandemic undermined access to basic health services around the world. This article investigates how the COVID-19 pandemic affected the use of reproductive health services by girls and women in South Africa. It focuses on maternal health services, particularly the ability of Traditional Birth Attendants to operate during the nation's lockdown. It employs a contrasting lens to illustrate the necessity and potential for Traditional Birth Attendants (TBAs) to improve maternal health outcomes by presenting a brief pre-pandemic scenario and investigating on the status during the COVID-19 pandemic. It concludes that health-sector collaboration between healthcare workers and Traditional Birth Attendants can and should play an essential role in rebuilding public health by lowering maternal mortality rates and improving service delivery outcomes.