BISSAU, Guinea-Bissau - 8 May 2025 - In a ceremony held today at CECOME (Central Procurement Centre for Essential Medicines), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) formalised the delivery of essential inter-agency emergency reproductive health kits to the Ministry of Public Health of Guinea-Bissau. This crucial action aims to alleviate the serious shortage of essential medicines for childbirth that is currently afflicting the country.

UNFPA's timely intervention comes at a critical time, following a recent alarming shortage in the national stock of medicines. This situation poses a serious danger to the health and lives of pregnant women and newborns, especially in regions with high maternal mortality rates. In response to the government's appeal and in line with the commitments made during the high-level presidential initiative to reduce maternal mortality in Guinea-Bissau, UNFPA demonstrated its readiness by being the first organisation to provide immediate support.

This delivery underlines UNFPA's firm commitment to improving maternal and newborn health indicators in Guinea-Bissau, responding directly to the urgent needs of regions facing humanitarian challenges. The reproductive health kits provided contain essential equipment, medicines and vital consumables to ensure clean and safe deliveries, manage obstetric complications and facilitate safe blood transfusions.

The batch of emergency reproductive health kits, costing approximately 100 million CFA francs (aproximately 175,000 USD), consists of:

• Normal Delivery Kit: Materials for individual normal deliveries.
• RH 2B Kit Clean Birth Kit: Essential materials for midwives to ensure clean births.
• RH 6A Kit - Clinical Childbirth Care: Reusable equipment for clinical childbirth care.
• Kit RH 6B - Clinical childbirth care: Essential medicines and disposable equipment for clinical childbirth care.
• Kit 11A - Obstetric surgery and complications: Reusable equipment for obstetric surgery and management of complications.
• Kit 11B - Obstetric Surgery and Complications: Medicines and disposable equipment for obstetric surgery and management of complications.
• Blood transfusion kit: Materials needed to safely carry out blood transfusions.

Public Health Minister Pedro Tipote, who presided over the ceremony, expressed his deep gratitude for UNFPA's crucial support. ‘This timely delivery of essential reproductive health kits is critical for us to address the critical shortage of medicines that has jeopardised the lives of many women and newborns across the country,’ said Minister Tipote. ‘UNFPA's commitment to respond promptly to our appeal demonstrates a solid partnership and a shared understanding of the urgency of this situation. These kits will significantly strengthen our ability to ensure safe, quality births for all women in Guinea-Bissau.’

For her part, the Representative of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Zalha Assoumana, reiterated the agency's commitment to supporting the Guinea-Bissau government's efforts to improve maternal and newborn health. ‘UNFPA stands by the Ministry of Public Health at this critical moment,’ said Zalha Assoumana. ‘We believe that no woman should lose her life giving birth. This delivery of kits is an immediate response to the shortage, but our support goes beyond this intervention. We will continue to work closely with the government and other partners to strengthen the health system and ensure continued access to quality reproductive health services for all women and young people in Guinea-Bissau.’

The handover ceremony represents a significant step in strengthening the capacity of Guinea-Bissau's health system to respond effectively to the reproductive health needs of its population, particularly in the most vulnerable regions. The collaboration between UNFPA and the Ministry of Public Health demonstrates a joint effort to protect the health and well-being of women and newborns in the country.