Ugandan woman, 70, gives birth to twins as she breaks record in Africa

A 70-year-old woman in Uganda has given birth to twins after becoming pregnant through IVF treatment, the hospital she was treated at said.

It made Safina Namukwaya the oldest woman to give birth in Africa after her baby daughter and son were delivered on Wednesday afternoon, the Women's Hospital International and Fertility Centre in the capital Kampala said.

Safina and her two newborns are doing well after the youngsters were delivered via a caesarean section.

The hospital said: “This story isn't just about medical success, it's about the strength and resilience of the human spirit.”

Safina told the NTV channel that this had been her second delivery in three years, after giving birth to a girl called Sarah in 2020.

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The mom said during her pregnancy she had experienced some complications and difficulties, including the father of her children leaving her.

She told the outlet: “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.”

Safina said in the past she had experienced stigma from within her community for not having any children.

The 70-year-old explained: “One time, a very young boy heckled at me saying I had been cursed by my mother to die without a child.”

Speaking after she had her first child in 2020, Safina said: “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.”

Pregnancies at Safina's age are rare, but she’s not the oldest internationally.

In 2019, Erramatti Mangayamma, from India, gave birth to twins, also through IVF, aged 74, making her the world's oldest mother.

The previous record was set by Bousada de Lara, gave birth to twin baby boys, Christian and Pau, aged 66 in December 2006.