Early recovery and building the resilience of Syria’s health system

The decade-long crisis in Syria has had a destructive impact on Syria’s health system, in addition to creating a humanitarian crisis. HSE has been working with the WHO country office in Syria to embark on the recovery process, while leveraging the nexus approach. United Nations Security Council Resolution 2528 (2020), adopted by the Security Council on 25 June 2020, opened this window of opportunity for international partners. Accordingly, a consultative workshop was convened in May 2022 to support early recovery and build the resilience of the Syrian health system through developing a common understanding of the strategic directions between WHO and the Ministry of Health, in collaboration with the key health sector partners.

The workshop concluded with a set of recommendations, including finalizing the Country Cooperation Strategy for WHO and the Syrian Arab Republic (2022–2024) and building the capacity of national stakeholders for health system recovery aligned with the “Syria after war programme” and the national health policies document (2020–2024). Collaboration is ongoing with the WHO country office, Ministry of Health and partners to finalize the national health strategy plan.

Supporting Afghanistan’s health system during the crisis and transition phase

Following the rapid collapse of the Afghanistan Government in mid-August 2021, under the WHO response plan, HSE worked with the WHO country office in Afghanistan and partners to support the health system during the crisis and the transition phase. HSE participated in a World Bank consultation in Dubai on 26–28 January 2022 on the future of health engagement in Afghanistan, including development of the health emergency response project. A country mission was also conducted in March 2022 and a technical brief was developed on health sector governance and coordination. It was presented in a meeting on interim priorities for the health sector in Afghanistan, 29–31 March 2022, Doha, Qatar, co-organized by WHO and UNICEF.

We continue collaboration with the Health Strategic Thematic Working Group under the new humanitarian architecture, while leveraging the nexus approach in the planning and implementation of health programmes.

Iraq’s universal health and preparedness review

HSE collaborated with the WHO Health Emergencies Programme (WHE) to develop the implementation protocol of the Universal Health and Preparedness Review (UHPR), which aims to adopt a holistic approach to building national capacities in preparing for priority public health threats. This includes investing in resilient health systems and more.

Iraq was the first country in WHO’s Eastern Mediterranean Region to conduct the UHPR in February 2020, which was the culmination of a thorough voluntary and transparent process that involved selected line ministries in the Iraqi Government, and several stakeholders in the country.

Post-disaster needs assessment

HSE supports disaster-affected countries with the design and implementation of post-disaster needs assessment in the health sector. Examples include supporting post-disaster needs assessment processes following floods in Islamic Republic of Iran (2019), Djibouti (2019), Sudan (2020), and the Beirut port explosion (2020).

A strong commitment to the United Nations Migration Network in Bahrain

The WHO country office in Bahrain is an active member of the United Nations Migration Network, which includes membership from the International Organization for Migration, International Labour Organization, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, and Resident Coordinator’s Office. HSE supports the contributions of the WHO country office in the United Nations Migration Network, including on issues such as the COVID-19 response and maternity leaves for migrants.

Hosting WHO Global School on Refugee and Migrant Health in Jordan

Jordan hosted the second WHO Global School on Refugee and Migrant Health, with the support of HSE. During the 5-day course, Jordan’s long history of welcoming refugees dating back to 1948 was highlighted. Two videos were developed and screened during the course, which focused on access to health care of Jordan’s approximately 3 million refugees. They also shed light on Jordan’s pandemic response, in which the national preparedness and response COVID-19 plan, supported by WHO, clearly emphasized a whole-of-society approach with beneficiaries, including all populations: Jordanians and non-Jordanians residing in both host communities and refugee camps. The short video summarized the COVID-19 vaccination rollout, in which Jordan was a pioneer ensuring that all refugees regardless of status would be included.

Migration health desk at Sudan’s Federal Ministry of Health

HSE continues to backstop for the WHO country office in Sudan’s migration health programme by ensuring continual support on many fronts. On 29 June 2022, the Ministry of Health launched the migration health desk to support refugees and migrants with their health needs. HSE has continued over the years to review and share documents to support the initiative, as well as ensure that migrants are always included in any discussions with the Ministry of Health.

Review of refugee and migrant health programme in Jordan

Jordan hosts the largest number of refugees in the Region with around one refugee for every Jordanian, ranked second among the world's top 10 host countries with the highest numbers of refugees. HSE supported the WHO country office to review the migration health programme to ensure that it was fit for purpose.

The review aimed to:

look at refugee and migrant health programme planning and implementation at the WHO country office in line with global, regional and national initiatives;

identify areas for collaboration and support for the newly established Ministry of Health Department of Humanitarian Aid under the Directorate of Project Management and International Cooperation;

explore opportunities to strengthen and position WHO’s work on refugee and migrant health in support of the national health system, and in collaboration with partners; and

identify priority actions for WHO at the 3 levels of the Organization.

The review covered the 4 strategic objectives that cover refugee and migrant health: mainstreaming, response, social determinants of health and partnership. The review concluded with a plan of action to implement the recommendations. Jordan’s review set an example for other countries in the Region.