On 22 October 2019, the WHO and UNICEF country offices in Libya, in collaboration with the Libyan Ministry of Health, opened a workshop to adapt WHO/UNICEF guidelines on the integrated management of neonatal and childhood illness (IMNCI) to the Libyan context.

IMNCI is an integrated approach to neonatal and child health that focuses on the well-being of the whole child. It aims to reduce death, illness and disability and promote improved growth and development among children under five years of age. Over a four-day period from 22 to 25 October 2019, child health specialists from the Ministry of Health, primary health care facilities, universities and hospitals across the country developed specific guidelines for Libya, based on global WHO/UNICEF guidelines.

The Libya-specific guidelines will be implemented in selected primary health care facilities and staff will be trained on their application. WHO, the Ministry of Health, UNICEF and other health partners will monitor implementation of the IMNCI guidelines, and based on the lessons learned they will be introduced in primary health care facilities across the country as part of WHO’s efforts to achieve universal health coverage.