About

United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) seeks to reinforce lifesaving neonatal intensive care services and improve referral-level maternal and newborn health systems in Gaza to ensure survival and better outcomes for high-risk newborns in a severely strained humanitarian context.

The focus areas, objectives, priorities, and themes of this intervention include health, general health services, health in emergencies, health systems strengthening, and maternal and newborn health including emergency obstetric care, with an emphasis on strengthening neonatal intensive care unit services, improving quality of care, enhancing clinical capacity of health workers, reinforcing referral systems, supporting nutrition and infant and young child feeding practices, and improving continuity of care before and after discharge.

The ongoing crisis in Gaza has severely disrupted maternal and newborn health services due to damage to health infrastructure, displacement of populations, shortages of essential supplies, and reduced availability of skilled health personnel. Referral hospitals and neonatal intensive care units are operating under extreme pressure while managing increasing numbers of high-risk deliveries and neonatal complications, particularly among premature, low birth weight, and critically ill newborns.

Within this context, UNICEF aims to support key referral hospitals, including major NICU hubs, to sustain essential neonatal services and strengthen their operational capacity. The intervention focuses on ensuring continuity of lifesaving care through improved functionality of NICU services, availability of critical inputs, and support for essential operational requirements in referral facilities.

A key component of the initiative is improving the quality of neonatal care through stronger adherence to standardized clinical protocols, including infection prevention and control, neonatal resuscitation, respiratory support, and thermoregulation. It also emphasizes strengthening clinical competencies through structured training, mentoring, and on-site support to healthcare providers.

The intervention further prioritizes strengthening referral pathways and coordination between primary healthcare facilities, maternity services, and referral hospitals to ensure timely access to specialized neonatal care. This includes improving communication and coordination mechanisms to reduce delays in managing high-risk newborn cases.

Eligibility

The program supports improved infant and young child feeding practices within neonatal intensive care units by promoting early initiation of breastfeeding, implementation of Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative principles, and caregiver counselling and support. It also strengthens follow-up systems after discharge to ensure continuity of care and linkage to nutrition and maternal support services.

Overall, the initiative contributes to improving equity in access to neonatal and maternal health services, strengthening system resilience, and enhancing the capacity of health authorities and facilities to maintain essential services under crisis conditions while improving survival outcomes for vulnerable newborns.

Post Date: April 14, 2026