14.11.2023

The Public Health Department of Almaty signed a Memorandum of Cooperation with AYALA Charitable Foundation in reducing infant mortality and disability in the largest metropolis of Kazakhstan.

 The memorandum between the Public Health Department of Almaty and AYALA Charitable Foundation is aimed at coordinating efforts and cooperation in the area of the development of the Fetal Health Center and Neonatal Service of the city, as well as reducing disability in premature newborns due to retinopathy.

“We highly appreciate many years’ contribution of AYALA Charitable Foundation to the development of children’s healthcare in Almaty. The Foundation’s vast experience and many years of expertise in neonatology, as well as the great civic desire of the foundation’s management to benefit the country and our city, have led to impressive results. Thanks to the efforts of AYALA Foundation, doctors began to perform heart surgeries in newborn children under 1 year of age in Almaty. For the first time, all perinatal intensive care units were equipped with advanced equipment for nursing preterm infants and equipment for diagnostics and treatment of retinopathy. We are sure that the combined efforts of the Department and professional NGOs will bring even more visible and positive results to strengthen the neonatal service of our city,” Iran Maratovich Shametekov the Head of Almaty Department of Public Health noted.

Reducing infant disability in Kazakhstan is the main goal of AYALA Charitable Foundation. This is the only foundation in the country specializing in neonatology issues. For 17 years, the foundation aims its efforts at saving lives and functional health of children here in Kazakhstan instead of bringing them abroad. For this purpose, AYALA transfers modern medical equipment to children’s hospitals, maternity hospitals, perinatal and research centers of the country.

Since 2007, AYALA Charitable Foundation has transferred over 682 million tenge to equip 19 medical institutions in the city with resuscitation equipment to support the development of children’s healthcare in Almaty. The Foundation provided assistance to the City Perinatal Center, Aksai Republican Children’s Hospital, the City Children’s Clinical Hospital for Infectious Diseases, the Center for Perinatology and Pediatric Cardiac Surgery, the Scientific Center for Obstetrics, Gynecology and Perinatology, the National Scientific Center for Surgery named after Syzganov, Children’s Hospitals No. 1 and No. 2, the City Hospital for Infectious Diseases, outpatient hospitals  No. 1, No. 3, No. 4, No. 7, No. 8, Maternity Hospitals No. 1, No. 2, No. 4 and No. 5, City Clinical Hospital No. 7 in Kalkaman. Furthermore, the Foundation conducted training for Almaty children’s doctors abroad and in Kazakhstan to improve their skills using the funds raised. Thanks to the foundation’s comprehensive and systematic approach, the lives of tens of thousands of children were saved in Almaty.

“I express my deep gratitude to the Public Health Department of Almaty for their trust, openness and attention to the problems of newborn children. We are always ready to be useful to the state by providing resources, knowledge and competencies accumulated by the Foundation over many years of its work. We hope that through joint efforts we can improve the situation with childhood disabilities from birth,” Aidan Suleimenova, the Founder and President of AYALA Charitable Foundation said. 

Previously, AYALA Charitable Foundation signed 3 Memoranda with the Health Ministry of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The result of the Foundation’s work under the first Memorandum was equipping all intensive care units of perinatal centers in Kazakhstan with equipment for nursing extremely premature babies, which made it possible to reduce the infant mortality rate 3.5 times by 2015. As part of the second Memorandum, the Foundation equipped a third of all perinatal centers in the country with automatic hypothermia devices, which helped to save lives and health of more than 400 children. As part of the third Memorandum, the Foundation donated 14 ophthalmoscopes, 5 retinal cameras, 5 laser units and 84 vials of Lucentis medicinal product to 14 medical centers of the Republic. More than 4,300 children underwent diagnostics using the equipment, and more than 380 premature babies have been saved from complete blindness, including those through the use of angiogenesis inhibitor injections.