The Executive Director of Mulago Specialized Women and Neonatal Hospital, Dr. Evelyn Nabunya, has announced the commencement of In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) services at the facility, marking a significant milestone in fertility treatment offered by the Ugandan government.
So far, 11 stimulations have been conducted, with two women successfully pregnant following the procedure.
Dr. Nabunya made the announcement while presenting the hospital’s 2025/26 Budget Framework Paper to Parliament’s Health Committee. She highlighted the progress of the IVF program and other achievements over the past six months.
“Among our achievements in the first half of the year is the launch of the long-awaited IVF services. We have completed 11 stimulations, six embryo transfers, and five embryos are currently frozen as preparations continue. Two patients remain pregnant, while two experienced clinical pregnancies that were unfortunately lost. However, we remain hopeful with our dedicated team,” she explained.
The United Kingdom’s National Health Services defines IVF as a fertility treatment where an egg is retrieved from a woman’s ovaries and fertilized with sperm in a laboratory. The resulting embryo is then transferred into the woman’s womb for development.
Dr. Nabunya warned that the sustainability of IVF services is at risk due to insufficient funding for medical supplies and reagents, estimating a need for UGX1.2 billion. “We have introduced new services, including IVF, dialysis, and microbiology. To perform a single IVF cycle for one client, we require UGX15 million. We urgently need an additional UGX1.2 billion to sustain these services,” she emphasized.
She also reported that the hospital had managed 858 neonates (premature babies) in the last six months. Of these, 32.9% were preterm, and 75 babies weighed below 1kg, with a survival rate of 59.1%. Babies weighing between 1-1.4kg had a survival rate of 79.4%, while those between 1.5-2.4kg had an 87.3% survival rate.
Dr. Nabunya recounted the survival story of the smallest premature baby cared for at the facility, born at 24 weeks weighing just 500 grams. “That baby, now a healthy two-and-a-half-year-old, survived retinopathy of prematurity, a condition linked to prolonged oxygen exposure that can cause blindness. This was detected early thanks to our vigilant team,” she noted.
However, the hospital faces significant challenges, particularly inadequate staffing, which hampers service delivery. “The nurse-to-patient ratio is critical, especially in neonatal care. Ideally, one nurse should attend to two babies, but we currently manage 10-15 babies per nurse,” Dr. Nabunya explained.
Funding constraints for super-specialized training further complicate service delivery. “We lack sufficient funds for advanced training to build local capacity and reduce dependence on foreign facilities. To address this, we require an additional UGX1.06 billion,” Dr. Nabunya stated.
Financial shortfalls also extend to utilities. Although the hospital received UGX539 million for electricity, the actual requirement stands at UGX1.1 billion, leaving a deficit of UGX611 million. Similarly, the water budget is underfunded, with UGX356 million allocated against a requirement of UGX1.2 billion.
For the 2025/26 fiscal year, Mulago Women’s Hospital has been allocated UGX16.099 billion for wages, UGX12.950 billion for non-wage expenses, and UGX2.041 billion for development.
This story was first published by Parliament Watch. Click here to read the original story.