Every year, 5th May is the International Day of the Midwife. On this day, midwives are celebrated worldwide for the noble work they do - saving lives of mothers and babies.

In Uganda, the Minister of State for Primary Healthcare, Hon. Joyce Moriku Kaducu, the Ambassador of Sweden to Uganda, H.E. Per Lindgärde, and the UNFPA Representative, Mr. Alain Sibenaler, chose to spend the whole afternoon with midwives at Mulago Specialised Women and Neonatal Hospital in Kampala, in honour of the life-saving work they do in the time of COVID1-19.

“Childbirth does not stop during COVID-19, and Midwives do not stop working during COVID-19,” said Mr. Alain Sibenaler. “Today on the International Day of the Midwife, we stand in solidarity with midwives around the world and especially in Uganda, for the lifesaving work that they do night and day.”

In agreement, H.E. Lindgärde noted that although the lockdown in Uganda has been challenging in many ways, it is critical to make sure that women and expectant mothers visit health facilities for their antenatal care, deliveries, family planning, as well as immunization for their children. He pointed out that midwifes are key to make this happen and they should be supported and protected.

“The challenge of COVID-19 is making the work of the midwives even more challenging this year,” H.E. Lindgärde said.

“The midwives being in the frontline, in many cases the first point of contact with patients, it is important that we all support them with Personal Protective Gear (PPE’s) and specialized training on COVID-19,” H.E. Lindgärde added.

The Minister of State for Primary Healthcare, Hon. Kaducu encouraged the midwives to also take personal responsibility to protect themselves as they save lives of mothers and babies.

She encouraged them to work even harder to make sure that the challenges brought by COVID-19 do not destroy the gains made in the past years. She noted that in the last two months, since the COVID-19 lockdown, the gains made for maternal health are being threatened.

“The indicators of the months of March and April are not good, I encourage you to work hard and sustain the gains we have made over the past years,” Hon. Kaducu said.

The theme for this year’s commemoration is: “Midwives with Women: Celebrate, Demonstrate, Mobilize, Unite – Our Time is NOW!

Mulago Specialised Women and Neonatal Hospital is a component of Mulago National Referral Hospital. At the facility, Hon. Kaducu, H.E. Lindgärde, and Mr. Sibenaler were received by the Hospital Director, Dr. Evelyn Nabunya, who led them to a guided tour of the well-equipped delivery rooms and maternity wards.