Dr. Abla El-Alfi, Deputy Minister of Health and Population, held a meeting with Dr. Hassan El-Nemany, President of Sohag University, to discuss enhancing the university’s role in reducing unnecessary cesarean sections and neonatal mortality rates in the governorate, in implementation of the presidential initiative “The Golden Thousand Days,” which aims to develop the Egyptian family and improve health indicators for mothers and children.

Dr. El-Alfi appreciated the fruitful cooperation with the university and thanked Dr. El-Nemany for his support of the initiative. She explained that an expanded committee including relevant ministries and universities was formed to integrate roles and ensure the availability of free family planning methods, especially long-term ones.

She pointed out the expansion of midwives’ training, with the start of the Egyptian Board program for midwifery lasting three years in cooperation with the International Council of Nurses, and the introduction of this specialty at the bachelor’s level for the first time in Egypt, inviting female students to join for the excellent employment opportunities it offers.

For his part, Dr. El-Nemany praised the importance of the initiative in raising health awareness, providing family planning services immediately after birth, and training youth as peer and family counselors. He added that the meeting discussed signing a cooperation protocol focusing on spreading the culture of safe natural childbirth, reducing complications from cesarean deliveries, improving demographic characteristics, and enhancing the efficiency of neonatal care units according to the latest global protocols to improve outcomes and reduce mortality rates.

El-Nemany confirmed that the university is intensifying its field efforts through its developmental and medical convoys within the “Decent Life” initiative for the most needy villages, through awareness seminars focusing on reproductive health, providing integrated counseling, and raising awareness of the population issue and the initiative’s goals, pledging to intensify these activities within the framework of cooperation.

The meeting was attended by Dr. Amr Dowidar, Director of the Sohag Health Directorate; Dr. Magdy El-Kady, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine; Dr. Ahmed Kamal, Director of the University Hospital; Dr. Mona Hafez, Director of the Technical Office of the Deputy Minister; Dr. Ahmed Khairy, Director of Operations and Training at the Deputy Minister’s Office; and Dr. Yasser Gamal, General Director of Follow-up at the National Population Council.