A dose of hope: UHC2030’s co-chairs urge leaders to protect immunization and healthcare access in conflict settings

In the context of the severe humanitarian crisis unfolding in Gaza, with widespread displacement, infrastructure destruction, and a collapsed healthcare system, the United Nations (UN) and the World Health Organization (WHO) have highlighted the critical importance of immunization as a fundamental aspect of humanitarian aid — essential for preventing outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases and safeguarding the most vulnerable.

However, the recent escalation in hostilities and the comprehensive aid blockade of more than 50 days has severely hindered immunization services, including efforts to contain diseases such as polio, which is at risk of re-emerging within the population.[i]

This dire situation underscores the broader challenges faced in conflict zones, where health systems are often the first to collapse and access to essential health services is severely restricted. Overcrowded shelters and damaged water and sanitation infrastructure further exacerbate the risk of disease transmission, while shortages of fuel and electricity hinder vaccine storage and delivery.​

We, the co-chairs of the UHC2030 Steering Committee, join the international community in calling for uninterrupted access to healthcare and humanitarian assistance in conflict-affected regions. This includes:

• Access to immunization services, a critical component of humanitarian response and a testament to our collective commitment to the well-being of every child
• The protection of health workers and facilities
• The necessary resources to rebuild health systems in conflict-affected areas

Unequivocally, vaccines are vital to public health and to the protection of individuals, communities and global health. We therefore call on the international community, especially world leaders involved in humanitarian and diplomatic efforts, to protect the right to health for all people and to promote peace through universal health coverage (UHC) by:

• Holding Member States accountable for complying with their obligations under international and humanitarian law.
• Urging for unrestricted humanitarian access and sustained access to water, food and health services for all populations, across all fragile and conflict settings, and ensuring, to the fullest extent possible, timely medical care for all wounded and sick people, including specialized care for non-communicable diseases, mental health, maternal, newborn and child health, and sexual and reproductive health.
• Ensuring uninterrupted access to immunization services and campaigns during crises, and committing adequate resources to rebuild, strengthen and sustain resilient health systems in conflict-affected settings.
• Ensuring the protection of all civilians and civilian infrastructure, including healthcare facilities, and of humanitarian and health and care workers, the majority of which are women.
• Working together to address health needs in conflicts and humanitarian crises, and ensuring the provision of essential health services and public health functions, in line with humanitarian principles – paying special attention to the health needs of children, women and girls, vulnerable and marginalized groups, and refugees and internally displaced people.
• Acting for solidarity and equity, including in fragile settings, by mobilizing well-aligned international support for resilient health systems based on primary health care, for UHC and health security.
• Creating safe spaces for participation and dialogue with local and regional governments, civil society and all stakeholders to ensure people’s voices are heard, irrespective of where their national governments stand. This is critical for humanitarian action, peacebuilding, longer-term reconstruction to respond to communities’ needs, and the multilateral response to all crises to be truly inclusive.

In the face of adversity, we must stand together to ensure that every child, regardless of their circumstances, has access to the care and vaccines they need to survive and thrive.​

Together, let us reaffirm our dedication to health for all and work tirelessly to uphold human dignity, especially for those caught up in conflict.
 

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[i] Polio is a highly infectious disease that can cause irreversible paralysis or death, particularly in children. After decades of global eradication efforts that brought the world to the brink of eliminating the virus, any outbreak — especially in conflict-affected areas with disrupted health systems — poses a serious setback and a renewed threat to global health security.