70-year-old woman gives birth to twins in ‘medical success’
A 70-year-old woman has given birth to twins after undergoing IVF, the hospital where she had treatment has announced.
Safina Namukwaya gained the title of the oldest person to give birth in Africa after she brought her two babies into the world.
She delivered a baby girl and boy via caesarean on Wednesday afternoon at the Women's Hospital International and Fertility Centre in Kampala, Uganda.
Doctors have described the pregnancy as a 'medical success' and said Safina and her two tots are all doing well.
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The mum has had quite a wild ride over the last nine months - on top of her struggle to conceive that spanned for four decades.
She first gave birth in 2020 and welcomed her baby girl Sarah, while explaining she had been bullied in her community for being childless.
Safina said at the time: "Many people judged and abused me for being barren but, I decided to leave everything to the Almighty God who has finally answered my prayers."
Following the successful birth of her daughter, she underwent further IVF treatment to bring her two twins in the world, but this pregnancy wasn't as smooth sailing.
The mum-of-three has suffered some complications - both health wise and in her personal life - over the last nine months.
Speaking to the NTV channel, Safina said that she is no longer in a relationship with the father of her two new bundles of joy.
She said: "Men don't like to hear that you are going to have more than one child. Even after I was admitted, my man never showed up."
Medics have been celebrating with her instead, with the hospital saying: "This story isn't just about medical success; it's about the strength and resilience of the human spirit."
Safina revealed she had heartbreakingly struggled to have a child for more than half of her life and after 40 years of trying she was forced to turn to IVF treatment.
She said she suffered several miscarriages, lost her husband in the 1990s and was ridiculed for her fertility issues.
The mum said: "One time, a very young boy heckled at me saying I had been cursed by my mother to die without a child."
Thankfully, she now has three healthy children.
Although she has made history in Africa, Safina isn't the oldest woman to give birth worldwide.
Erramatti Mangayamma gave birth to twin girls in 2019 at the age of 74 following IVF treatment in India.
The NHS typically only offers IVF to women under the age of 43, although some private clinics offer services for women in higher age brackets.
Topics: Health, World News, Parenting
Olivia Burke