16 August 2022 – WHO, together with the Relief Experts Association UDER as implementing agency, has bolstered the provision of primary health care services in northwest Syria by rendering the facilities in the towns of Sarmada, Tarmanin, Daret Azza and Zarzour fully operational. 

Due to the size and scope of the project – which took place between August 2021 and May 2022 – UDER had struck agreements with several other organizations on the ground. Thanks to immense efforts requiring daily coordination, the Mentor Initiative offered leishmaniasis treatment services; Physicians Across Continents delivered malnutrition services; Shafak Organization provided childbirth and nutrition services; the Syrian Immunization Group made various vaccination services available – including for tuberculosis, polio, diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, haemophilus influenzae type B, hepatitis B, measles, German measles, mumps and COVID-19; the Assistance Coordination Unit provided daily nutritional surveillance services; and the Qatar Red Crescent offered psychosocial services. 

This multi-partner approach proved highly effective in delivering th best possible health care to the people of northwest Syria.

During the project – supported by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) and its Syrian Cross-border Humanitarian Fund (SCHF) – 174 374 medical consultations were provided through the 4 health facilities (132% of the targeted 131 893), including for 98 064 internally displaced persons in the area. A total of 127 276 patients (equating over 159% of the targeted 80 000) were screened for temperature measurements. 

Over 70 health care workers (254% of the 28 originally targeted) were trained on various health topics. UDER also recruited 24 community health workers in connection to the 4 health care centres (10 in Sarmada; 6 in Tarmanin; 2 in Daret Azza; and 6 in Zarzour) to actively screen communities and refer individuals with health conditions to the facilities. The total number of people screened and referred to health services reached 4892 (230% of the planned target: 2125).

By the end of the project, community health workers had conducted 17 403 household sessions (103% of the targeted 16 896), which comprised health education and awareness, including on the preventative measures against COVID-19. 

For more information, please contact:   

Grattan Lynch
Communications Officer
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4 August 2022 - In response to the ongoing measles outbreak in north-west Syria (NWS), the World Health Organization’s Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean and its Gaziantep Field Office in Türkiye organized a measles surveillance and outbreak response workshop joined by 35 participants from WHO’s surveillance and immunization operational partners -- the Assistance Coordination Unit (ACU) and the Syrian Immunization Group (SIG).

The three-day training was conducted by WHO’s Regional Office and WHO Gaziantep’s surveillance team, supported by the immunization team. Nine participants joined from NWS so that they could then relay and share the information gained from the training with the medical community and health care workers there.  

The training covered measles infection, prevention and control, case management, community engagement and enhanced surveillance -- with a special focus on surveillance reporting quality -- and included a case study which trainees engaged with over the course of the three days.

Prior to the workshop, WHO and partners had identified a need to increase capacity-building activities in the field for responding to measles surveillance and outbreaks in NWS.

For more information, please contact:

Grattan Lynch, Communications Officer
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Damascus, 2 August 2022 – Italy has contributed 2 million euros to the World Health Organization to support efforts to vaccinate 40% of the targeted population in Syria by the end of 2022.

A number of interventions have so far been implemented at the national level to accelerate COVID-19 vaccination in Syria, including national vaccination campaigns in May and June 2022. During these two campaigns, the Ministry of Health mobilized over 6000 trained health workers to conduct COVID-19 vaccination activities at both fixed health facilities and through mobile medical teams across all governorates of the country.

Despite all these efforts, only 10% of the total population of Syria have received full vaccination. This low coverage is due to high vaccine hesitancy caused by the prolonged and complex crisis coupled with a deteriorating economic situation, both of which have triggered general fatigue among the Syrian population and impeded COVID-19 vaccination efforts.

“Italy recognizes the crucial role of health as an essential engine for the social and economic development of the population. This contribution is in line with the funds made available to WHO in 2020, at the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, for a programme aiming at enhancing the national laboratory diagnostic capacity for timely confirmation of COVID-19, and integrates the distribution of almost 4 million doses of Johnson & Johnson donated by Italy at the beginning of 2022 through the COVAX facility,” said Mr Massimiliano D’Antuono, Chargé d’Affaires of the Italian Embassy in Damascus.

“Thanks to the collaboration with WHO, Italy guarantees its support to the health system, considering particularly the low vaccination rate in Syria against a global increase of positive cases. Therefore, this programme allows us to cover the operational costs to expedite the vaccination process and to reach all locations in Syria, confirming our support to the Syrian population” added Mrs Alessandra Piermattei, Director of the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation for Lebanon and Syria.

The donation of the Italian Cooperation will support the operational costs of two rounds of intensified vaccination activities in all 14 governorates of Syria, including for internally displaced people, refugees and high-risk groups in formal and informal settlements, contributing to increased vaccination rates and reduction of morbidity and mortality caused by COVID-19.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the Syrian health system, already overburdened by the ongoing crisis and the depletion of health professionals and medical supplies,” said Dr Iman Shankiti, WHO Representative a.i. in Syria.

“WHO welcomes this generous funding from the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation, which will play a pivotal role in supporting the health system to scale-up COVID-19 vaccination coverage in the country and protecting the lives of people on Syria,” Dr Shankiti added.

Earlier in 2022, Italy donated around 4 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines through the COVAX facility to boost higher vaccination rates in Syria. This new contribution is an additional milestone towards achieving a more resilient public health system and a healthier tomorrow for the Syrian population.

A WHO-supported mobile clinic provides free-of-charge services to people who suspect they may have TB

Damascus, 7 July 2022 – WHO, the Global Fund and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) have been working closely to address HIV and tuberculosis (TB) epidemics under the Middle East Response (MER) project. Through the MER 1 grant, WHO is supporting the Ministry of Health in Syria’s national TB programme with 3 mobile clinics in Aleppo, Rural Damascus and Deir-ez-Zor governorates, as Syria’s protracted crisis has severely affected the health system across the country. 

Each of the WHO-supported mobile clinics – with accompanying doctor, nurse, laboratory technician and driver – is equipped with an X-ray machine capable of sharing high-quality digital images through mobile networks for swift diagnosis. The mobile clinics also contain an electric generator to be deployed in remote areas with severe electricity shortages.  

Samera, a 25-year-old lady from Deir Haffer in Rural Aleppo, had been suffering from weight loss and severe cough for over 2 weeks. During a medical consultation at an Aleppo health care centre, Samera heard about the WHO-supported mobile X-ray clinic that provides health services free-of-charge and visits her village regularly. “Transportation and treatment fees would have overburdened me. Having the mobile clinic in my own village is a tremendous relief,” said Samera, overjoyed.

After her examination and X-ray, the technician sent Samera’s radiology results to an online group of specialized doctors from across the country, including responsible physicians at Al-Masaranieh Specialized Centre, 30 km away. Later, a requested sputum sample was also sent for diagnosis at Al-Masaranieh laboratory, where the culture was tested with a GeneXpert PCR system to assess drug resistance within mere hours. As mobile clinics transport samples to Al-Masaranieh Centre for analysis, patients are no longer forced to make the journey to public health centres for lab results. Once confirmed as a TB patient, Samera’s treatment was initiated and her care began in her village. “Our area is difficult to access for medical treatment and care. The presence of the mobile clinic was simply life-saving,” she added.

During the last 2 years, 83 119 individuals in Aleppo governorate received the needed health services and key messages about TB – integrated with COVID-19 messages – thanks to the WHO mobile clinic. Of the total population screened, 315 tested positive for TB, accounting for 30% of TB cases in the governorate.  

“Tuberculosis is one of the top 10 causes of mortality worldwide and remains a significant threat to human life among the most vulnerable in Syria. Tackling the disease remains highly challenging in a country where widespread shortages of medicines and displacement interrupt essential lengthy treatments that are needed to prevent the development of drug-resistant TB,” said Dr Iman Shankiti, WHO Representative a.i in Syria. “We highly appreciate our partnerships with the Global Fund and IOM to provide quality health services to all people in need without exposing them to financial hardship, and we will spare no efforts to ensure that everyone everywhere has an equal chance at a healthy life,” Dr Shankiti added.

WHO support extends to building the capacity of health care officers at the national TB programme. In 2021, the national programme and the National Reference Laboratory for TB testing held 15 coordination and capacity-building workshops attended by 390 national TB programme officers from various governorates.