CEDAW/C/GC/34 services capable of performing caesarean sections, and indirectly from early pregnancy and malnutrition. 38. Maternal mortality and morbidity are disproportionately high in many rural areas. Child marriage exposes rural girls to early pregnancy and significantly contributes to maternal mortality, in particular in developing countries. Globally, the presence of skilled birth attendants and medical personnel is lower in rural than urban areas and leads to poor prenatal, perinatal and postnatal care. There is a greater unmet need for family planning services and contraception owing to poverty, the lack of information and the limited availability and accessibility of services. Rural women are more likely to resort to unsafe abortion than their urban counterparts, a situation that puts their lives at risk and compromises their health. Even in countries in which abortion is legal, restrictive c onditions, including unreasonable waiting periods, often impede access for rural women. When abortion is illegal, the health impact is even greater. 39. States parties should safeguard the right of rural women and girls to adequate health care, and ensure: (a) That high-quality health-care services and facilities are physically accessible to and affordable for rural women, including older women, heads of household and women with disabilities (provided free of charge when necessary), culturally acceptable to them and staffed with trained medical personnel. Services should provide: primary health care, including family planning; access to contraception, including emergency contraception, and to safe abortion and high-quality post-abortion care, regardless of whether abortion is legal; prenatal, perinatal, postnatal and obstetric services; HIV prevention and treatment services, including emergency intervention following rape; mental health services; counselling on nutrition, the feeding of infants and young children; mammography and other gynaecological examinations services; the prevention and treatment of non-communicable diseases, such as cancer; access to essential medicines, including pain relief; and palliative care; (b) The adequate financing of health-care systems in rural areas, in particular with regard to sexual and reproductive health and rights; (c) That laws and regulations that place obstacles to rural women’s access to health care, including to sexual and reproductive health services, are repealed, in particular laws that criminalize or require waiting periods or third-party consent for abortion; (d) The systematic and regular monitoring of the health and nutritional status of pregnant women and new mothers, especially adolescent mothers, and their infants. In case of malnutrition or lack of access to clean water, extra food rations and drinking water should be provided systematically throughout pregnancy and lactation; (e) That rural health-care facilities have adequate water and sanitation services; (f) That health-care information is widely disseminated in local languages and dialects through various media, including in writing, through illustrations and orally, and that it includes information on, inter alia: hygiene; preventing communicable, non-communicable and sexually transmitted 16-03601 11/25