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INTRODUCTION OF 2008 THORAYA AHMED OBAID INTERNATIONAL AWARDS FOR THE HEALTH AND DIGNITY OF WOMEN

María del Carmen Elu Cayado
Social Anthropologist

Dr. María del Carmen Elu Cayado is a renowned social anthropologist in Mexico who has devoted her life to ensure that women survive childbirth. In a country that once viewed maternal death as an isolated problem, Dr. Elu has moved health care providers and policy makers to prioritize women’s survival.

In college Dr. Elu met and married a fellow student and adopted his home country, Mexico, as her own. While conducting research on women’s role in the family in Mexico, she uncovered an extremely high death rate among women in rural communities due to preventable complications of pregnancy and childbirth. Her ground breaking book, The Buried Light, brought the issue and Dr. Elu to public attention.

Fifteen books and hundreds of conferences later, Dr. Elu is responsible for leading a nation to act on behalf of women’s health and ability to survive childbirth. Dr. Elu combined research with action based on her deep commitment to the value of every woman’s life. For more than 30 years, her UNFPA-funded work has saved the lives of marginalized indigenous women.

Dr. Elu’s gift lies in her keen observations about culture and her power to motivate. Over the years, families, authorities and health agencies have joined to remove barriers to women’s health care and better prepare health personnel to serve women. Dr. Elu has increased the value of women’s lives and assured their survival for generations.