The full-scale invasion of Ukraine has severely disrupted the healthcare system, and has continued to put the lives of women and newborns at risk. Security concerns, damaged infrastructure, and restricted mobility has led to an alarming increase in premature births, with over 9,000 reported in the first nine months of 2022.
Responding to this critical need, as a part of a commitment made by UNFPA Executive Director Natalia Kanem to First Lady Olena Zelenska, AECID (Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation) has generously funded 30 mobile incubators for newborns and two vehicles for mobile Survivor Relief Centres to UNFPA.
UNFPA Representative in Ukraine, Massimo Diana, expressed gratitude, stating, "We extend heartfelt thanks to Spain for their humanitarian support, prioritizing life-saving maternal and newborn health.This support is crucial in addressing newborn mortality, enhancing protection of women, children, and girls within the humanitarian response framework in Ukraine."
These incubators will provide safety for newborns in the most war-affected regions of Mykolaiv, Kherson, Odesa, Zaporizhzhia, and Kharkiv, empowering healthcare professionals to transport infants to medical facilities securely, and provide essential care during air raids by moving them to bomb shelters. The modern incubators, equipped to maintain optimal temperature, humidity, and oxygen levels, represent a critical advancement in neonatal care.
We recently heard from Maternity Hospital #5 in Odessa about the birth of healthy twins, safely delivered and moved with the new incubators supplied by UNFPA. What a wonderful gift of life inspiring us to continue!
AECID and UNFPA forge ahead in solidarity, ensuring that the most vulnerable receive the care and support they urgently need.
Mobile incubators for newborns are provided in terms of the humanitarian response initiative by UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, with the financial support of AECID.
