UNFPA and the EU continue cooperation to support reproductive health in Ukraine

UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund in Ukraine, with the support of the European Union, has recently delivered 12 tons of aid to perinatal centers and maternity wards in eight regions of Ukraine.

Medical facilities in Cherkasy, Lviv, Sumy, Mykolaiv, Ternopil, Zakarpattia and Rivne oblasts received necessary medicines, equipment and personal protective equipment for staff to ensure uninterrupted sexual and reproductive health services to those in need.

This is the third tranche of such humanitarian aid within the current partnership between UNFPA and the EU – in July and December 2022, 16 institutions in other regions of Ukraine received 56 tons of medicines, medical equipment, personal protective equipment, sanitary and hygienic kits for patients and staff.

In total, since the beginning of the full scale invasion, UNFPA, with the support of various donors, has provided more than 180 tons of aid to reproductive health facilities and departments throughout all regions of Ukraine.

"Medical facilities throughout Ukraine continue to overcome extreme pressures – being under fire, recovering from destruction, and taking on an excessive workload due to the large number of internally displaced people in the region. At this stage, the reproductive health system needs support no less than at the beginning of the war. That is why we continue to help both patients and medical staff. After all, despite the war, every pregnancy should be desirable, and every birth should be safe", – emphasized Pavlo Zamostian, Assistant Representative of UNFPA in Ukraine.

"Ukrainian doctors are working around the clock to provide medical services to people in need, but the damage to Ukraine's health system is extensive. Every woman has the right to access quality perinatal care – even during war. We continue to work together with partners like UNFPA to make sure that women across Ukraine receive the medical attention they deserve," said Claudia Amaral, Head of EU Humanitarian Aid in Ukraine.

Last autumn, UNFPA also launched a telephone line for sexual and reproductive health, which can be reached by dialing #3033 by patients and health care providers who need advice from leading industry experts.