Newsroom
Parents of premature infants are expressing anger and disappointment over fresh delays to the long-promised expansion of the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Makarios Hospital in Nicosia, saying vulnerable babies and their families are being left behind.
The Miracle Babies Association, a group that advocates for preterm infants, accused the state health services organization, OKYpY, of dragging its feet and breaking repeated promises about the project’s start.
“The immediate launch of this project has once again proven to be an illusion,” the group said Friday, recalling that OKYpY’s director-general Kypros Stavridis had pledged rapid progress during a parliamentary Health Committee meeting before the summer holidays.
The project’s contract was signed in December 2023. But nearly 19 months later, construction still hasn’t started. OKYpY told lawmakers this week the NICU would not be completed until the end of 2027, a timeline the parents’ group called “tragic.”
They also questioned why it would take 10 months just to re-award the project, given that all documents and plans are ready.
“This is not just another infrastructure project that can be delayed for years,” the association said. “It is about the lives of the smallest and most vulnerable babies, who cannot speak for themselves. We are their voice, and we will continue to demand that they get what they need, are entitled to and deserve.”
The expansion and renovation of the NICU at Makarios, Cyprus’ main maternity and children’s hospital, has been a long-standing demand from medical professionals and parents, who say the current facilities are overcrowded and outdated.
