TEHRAN –The ministry of health in cooperation with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) organized two training of trainers (ToT) workshops to help health experts boost their knowledge of media health literacy.

The workshops were held in Tehran in the first week of May.

Some 80 health education and health promotion experts from the ministry of health participated in the workshops.

The participants enhanced their knowledge and exchanged views on media health literacy to tackle misinformation and disinformation in different health-related areas.

 Participants in this three-day ToT engaged in fruitful discussions on media health literacy and reviewed lessons learned in the past years, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic as well as charted the way forward.

The training aimed to help health practitioners differentiate misinformation and disinformation against proven facts on health-related information in the media and learn how to react appropriately to incorrect information. 

The facilitators of the workshops included top national lecturers from different partner organizations, namely the Iranian Audio-Visual Regulatory Authority (SATRA), the Iranian Cyber Space Police (FATA), the Parliament News Department, Tehran University, and Iran’s Media Literacy Organization.

In the next step, the trained health practitioners will hold provincial workshops on media health literacy across the country for health volunteers and ambassadors.

Learning how to deal with misinformation and disinformation in health-related areas enhances the media health literacy of society and contributes to improved accessibility of reliable healthcare information for the public, especially families, mothers, and children.

Recent services

The ministry of education and UNICEF held a workshop for principals of Upper Secondary Boarding Schools from 10 provinces to boost their capacities in developing students' skills which are essential to finding a decent job.

The four-day long workshop was held from April 27 to 30.  A total of 90 Upper Secondary Boarding School principals from 10 provinces of Kordestan, Kermanshah, Hamedan, Ilam, Zanjan, Markazi, Qazvin, Ardebil, West and East Azarbaijan attended the workshop.

UNICEF's collaboration with the ministry of education focuses on adolescents in boarding schools, which are secondary schools in disadvantaged parts of the country.

The training opportunity provides school principals with the necessary knowledge and skills to support the students, at these schools in rural and remote regions, in improving their self-assurance, problem-solving, and teamwork skills.

This series of workshops marks the initial phase that will span across all provinces throughout the year, the UNICEF website announced in a press release on May 9.

UNICEF has provided safe and supportive spaces for Afghan children in the Torbat-e Jam Refugee Settlement in Khorasan Razavi Province to develop skills essential for dealing with life challenges.

UNICEF-supported Child-Friendly Space (CFS) in Iran is one of the three centers made possible by the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations’ financial aid. 

CSFs provide children the chance to play and grow, the UNICEF website announced in a press release on April 30.

Following the destructive floods that hit Sistan-Baluchestan province in February, UNICEF was actively engaged in providing essential aid to the affected communities mainly women and children. 

Funded by the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO), UNICEF procured 2900 essential hygiene packs including 2000 household hygiene kits, 300 baby kits, 500 Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM) kits, and 100 incontinence kits to prevent disease outbreaks and promote children’s overall well-being, the UNICEF website reported on April 30.

UNICEF, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Medical Education and the Ministry of Energy, prioritized the provision of safe water and sanitation services to households and communities affected by the disaster to ensure that children and families stay safe and healthy.

UNICEF has also delivered ten water tankers and over 3 tons of perchroline powder to the affected areas, ensuring access to safe drinking water.

As part of UNICEF’s humanitarian response to the flood-affected communities in Sistan-Baluchestan, children and families in the affected villages of Dashtiari district will receive 2900 hygiene packs. 

The UNICEF supported the delivery of 564,000 doses of Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV) for the prevention of pneumococcal-related infections and deaths among children in Iran.

The measure was adopted in support of the introduction of PCV in the national childhood immunization program in the country, the UNICEF website reported on March 17.

The consignment was the first shipment of PCV to the country, using Iran's financial resources left over from the procurement of COVID-19 vaccines, and delivered in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Medical Education of the Islamic Republic of Iran, through UNICEF procurement services.

The shipment arrived from India and landed at Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport on March 17.

On January 27, the Vice Presidency for Science, Technology, and Knowledge-Based Economy, and the UNICEF signed a memorandum of understanding to develop an innovation ecosystem for children and adolescents in the country.

The MOU was signed by Amir-Hossein Mirabadi, an official with the Vice Presidency, and Nandy, IRNA reported.

Moreover, UNICEF in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Medical Education has provided eight prefabricated healthcare rooms to address health challenges in quake-hit villages in Khoy County.

The main objective is to provide uninterrupted primary medical care for the affected children and their families, according to a press release by the UNICEF website on January 23.

MT/MG