Health services at EU funded Faizabad hospital. © WHO / Zakarya Safari
13 November 2025, Cairo, Egypt – World Prematurity Day, which is being marked on 15 November, is a global moment to raise awareness of the challenges and impact of preterm birth. The day shines a spotlight on the urgent need to improve care for babies born too soon and provide practical and emotional support for their families.
This year’s theme, Give preterm babies a strong start for a hopeful future, echoes the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Healthy beginnings, hopeful futures campaign. It reminds us that every child deserves a fair chance at life, starting from their very first moments.
Complications from preterm birth are now the leading cause of death among children under 5 accounting for more than one fifth (22.8%) of the deaths of under-5 in the Region. In the Eastern Mediterranean Region, where 11% of babies are born prematurely, the challenge is urgent.
In conflict-affected countries the burden of prematurity is compounded by war, displacement and hunger. In Gaza, over 4000 babies are born each month. During the first half of 2025, 1 in 3 was premature, underweight or required intensive neonatal care. In Sudan, conflict has displaced 14 million people and mothers face a 10-fold higher risk of dying in childbirth. In Yemen stillbirths are 50% higher than the global average.
Childbirth does not pause for conflict. Pregnancies unfold under siege, without food, clean water or electricity. In hospitals that are damaged or without power, caesarean sections are performed by flashlight. Premature babies are wrapped in foil for warmth. Health workers struggle to keep newborns alive with almost nothing.
Malnutrition is a major driver of prematurity. Undernourished mothers are more likely to deliver early or lose their babies within hours. When hospitals are targeted, fuel blocked and supply chains severed, mothers and newborns pay the price.
As well as conflict, the Eastern Mediterranean Region’s high burden of preterm births is a consequence of structural inequities – maternal undernutrition, weak referral systems, limited neonatal care and shortages of trained staff. In countries such as Pakistan, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen, many women deliver without skilled support. The result? Too many babies die unseen.
WHO, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and partners are scaling up evidence-based interventions for preterm and low-birth-weight infants, strengthening data, service delivery, workforce training and financing under the Every Newborn Action Plan.
To coincide with World Prematurity Day 2025, WHO is launching Kangaroo mother care (KMC): a clinical practice guide, promoting this simple, lifesaving method as routine care for all preterm and low-birth-weight babies.
In 2024, the World Health Assembly adopted Resolution WHA77.5, committing to accelerate progress towards reducing maternal, newborn and child mortality in order to achieve Sustainable Development Goal targets 3.1 and 3.2. However, cuts to official development assistance (ODA) are already undermining maternal and newborn services. WHO data show reductions of up to 70% in antenatal, delivery and neonatal care across several low- and middle-income countries.
To mitigate the impacts of the funding crisis, WHO and partners are supporting countries prioritize essential services, protect health budgets and integrate externally financed programmes into comprehensive primary health care.
In conflict and humanitarian settings, the priority is keeping mothers and newborns alive: safe deliveries, neonatal care including KMC and secure humanitarian access. In recovery settings, the task is to rebuild, to restore supply chains, rehabilitate maternity units and train frontline providers. In stable countries, the focus must be prevention and innovation.
This year’s World Prematurity Day campaign calls on countries to:
invest in special care for small and sick newborns, including neonatal units, specially trained staff, dedicated space and lifesaving equipment;
strengthen maternal health services to prevent preterm birth and detect health problems early;
support families with emotional, financial and practical resources to care for their babies; and
promote equity to ensure that survival does not depend on geography or income and that every baby has the best chance at survival and a healthy future.
