A Fight for Every Breath.
8.163 meters. 8.163 donors.
Aleksandar Milosavljević is climbing Manaslu without oxygen. At extreme altitude, every breath is a fight for survival—just as it is for thousands of babies born prematurely in Serbia. Join the mission.
42,000+
Monthly donors
currently active
14 years
The Club has been
active since 2012
10.000+
Babies assisted from 2022
OUR ANNUAL GOAL: RAISING FUNDS FOR EQUIPMENT FOR MATERNITY HOSPITALS ACROSS SERBIA.
Deadline: 31.12.2026.
Together on a mission for babies born too soon
Aleksandar Milosavljević is more than a mountaineer. He is also a long-time monthly UNICEF donor. This September, he is planning to climb 8,163 metres high Manaslu without supplemental oxygen.
Aleksandar chooses his challenge. But some have no choice.
In Serbia, thousands of babies born too soon face the same struggle from their very first day — a fight for every breath. They spend their first days and weeks in neonatal intensive care units, fighting for every breath, every heartbeat, and the ability to regulate their body temperature.
That is why, together with Aleksandar, we have set an ambitious goal: 8,163 new monthly donors. One for every metre. One for every breath.
What do premature babies need?
- Specialized medical equipment: incubators, resuscitation tables, CPAP devices for non-invasive respiratory support and other essential equipment needed to care for the smallest and most vulnerable patients.
- The constant presence of their parents: the sound of their parents' voices, their scent, skin-to-skin contact, breast milk feeding, and other components of developmental care.
Your donation helps provide life-saving medical equipment for premature babies, giving these little fighters the chance to survive, grow, and thrive.
Preterm birth is responsible for 60% of all newborn deaths and 42% of deaths among children under five. Every baby deserves a chance to survive, regardless of where they are born.
Over the past five years, with the support of our donors, we have significantly strengthened neonatal intensive care units in major centres in Belgrade, Kragujevac, Niš, and Novi Sad, and supported the treatment of around 10,000 premature babies. However, our work is not yet complete.
Nationwide focus — with special attention to the south and central Serbia
Although major centres are increasingly well equipped, a baby’s chance of survival still depends on where they are born. That is why our goal is to support the improvement of neonatal care in maternity hospitals across Serbia.
We place a special focus on the regions of southeastern and central Serbia, where infant mortality rates remain higher than in other parts of the country.
Your donation helps ensure that babies born too soon have a chance at life and optimal development, no matter where they are born.
What does your donation provide?
| One mobile X-ray machine | 13.900.000 RSD |
| One resuscitation table | 2.200.000 RSD |
| One incubator | 2.030.000 RSD |
| One chair for skin-to-skin contact | 48.000 RSD |
What have we achieved together?
15 incubators to stabilize babies’ vital functions
12 respirators to assist breathing
4 therapeutic hypothermia systems — critical in the first hours of life
28 infusion pumps for precise medication dosing
1 ambulance for transporting the most vulnerable babies
Chairs for skin-to-skin contact, equipment for developmental care
Progress for children — infant mortality rate
SERBIA
4,63
↓
3,06
per 1.000 live births
in 2010. → 2023.
Niš
7,14
↓
3,89
per 1.000 live births
in 2021. → 2023.
First hand
Elena's story
“When she was born, Elena weighed only 980 grams. The birth itself is stressful, but it is much more stressful when you cannot be with your baby. The moment I held her in my arms and brought her close to my chest, the magic began… Everything stopped, and only the two of us mattered in that moment.”
— Mirjana, Elena's mother, Kragujevac
Lenka and Miona's story
In the first days, mom Milana could only touch her girls through the hatches of the incubator. Skin-to-skin contact, crucial to their recovery, was present from the beginning, but to a limited extent.
“I would go down every three hours, and skin-to-skin contact was possible each time I came to see them. At first, while they were still in the incubator, I could only touch them through the openings, but it was present from day one. As their condition improved each day, more and more contact became possible. In the end, I was able to hold them in my arms.”