A mother, Safina Namukwaya, 70, has joyfully welcomed her boy-girl twins in Kampala, Uganda.
Women’s Hospital International and Fertility Center, the medical facility that delivered the twins, announced the historic news shortly after the babies’ arrival Nov. 29. The proud women’s reproductive center noted that Namukwaya is rumored to have set the record for the eldest woman in Africa to give birth. Its statement praised the matriarch as “Africa’s oldest mother.”
The baby twins were born at 12:04 p.m. East Africa Time, and the source noted that the mother and babies were all well after the delivery. Namukwaya has reportedly been going back and forth between breastfeeding and pumping her milk.
Dr. Edward Tamale Sali, the 70-year-old’s fertility specialist, shared with TODAY.com that the babies were born prematurely at 31 weeks by a C-section, each weighing over 3 pounds.
“She’s healthy. She’s talking. She’s walking around if they tell her to walk around the hospital,” Arthur Matsiko, a spokesman for the Kampala-based fertility center, shared with the Associated Press.
A true matriarch, Namukwaya said she raised other people’s children over the years since she couldn’t have her own. She explained that after experiencing other people’s children grow up and leave her behind, she recommitted to having her own kids.
Namukwaya revealed to the Monitor, a Ugandan-based outlet, that her partner abandoned her when he found out she was pregnant with two.
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Regardless, the mother said she has support from those in the village where she lives in Masaka District. She told TODAY.com that her network would help her wash the twins and get them clean.
“I feel great,” Namukwaya told the latter outlet via an interpreter. “Some might argue that 70 years is old, but God decided that I get to have twins at 70. There is no one that can put a limit on God’s authority and power.”
Notably, the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) claims that embryo transfer, such as what occurs during the IVF process, is “discouraged in women over age 55.”
Women’s Hospital International and Fertility Center, the medical facility that delivered the twins, announced the historic news shortly after the babies’ arrival Nov. 29. The proud women’s reproductive center noted that Namukwaya is rumored to have set the record for the eldest woman in Africa to give birth. Its statement praised the matriarch as “Africa’s oldest mother.”
The baby twins were born at 12:04 p.m. East Africa Time, and the source noted that the mother and babies were all well after the delivery. Namukwaya has reportedly been going back and forth between breastfeeding and pumping her milk.
Dr. Edward Tamale Sali, the 70-year-old’s fertility specialist, shared with TODAY.com that the babies were born prematurely at 31 weeks by a C-section, each weighing over 3 pounds.
“She’s healthy. She’s talking. She’s walking around if they tell her to walk around the hospital,” Arthur Matsiko, a spokesman for the Kampala-based fertility center, shared with the Associated Press.
Namukwaya had her twins via IVF, or in vitro fertilization. The twins come after the Ugandan mother welcomed a baby girl in 2020 — also via fertility treatment.
The mother said she was inspired to have children at her “advanced age” because she didn’t have the opportunity to do so when she was younger, despite her desire to experience motherhood. She recalled that when she was younger, she was unable to conceive.A true matriarch, Namukwaya said she raised other people’s children over the years since she couldn’t have her own. She explained that after experiencing other people’s children grow up and leave her behind, she recommitted to having her own kids.
Namukwaya’s story is a true testament to resilience toward the heart’s desires — and the power of community.
Issac Chebet, a Women’s Hospital International and Fertility Center doctor, noted that the mother received a well-rounded and extensive physical before the location’s physicians deemed her fit to carry a pregnancy. Moreover, the AP shared that the fertility clinic gave Namukwaya her IVF treatments for free since the 70-year-old couldn’t afford them. Depending on where you get IVF, it can cost up to tens of thousands both in the U.S. and abroad.Namukwaya revealed to the Monitor, a Ugandan-based outlet, that her partner abandoned her when he found out she was pregnant with two.
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Regardless, the mother said she has support from those in the village where she lives in Masaka District. She told TODAY.com that her network would help her wash the twins and get them clean.
“I feel great,” Namukwaya told the latter outlet via an interpreter. “Some might argue that 70 years is old, but God decided that I get to have twins at 70. There is no one that can put a limit on God’s authority and power.”
Notably, the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) claims that embryo transfer, such as what occurs during the IVF process, is “discouraged in women over age 55.”
