UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said Wednesday that 6.9 million Syrian children urgently need humanitarian assistance. The agency is working with the Syrian government and local partners to restore essential services and rebuild child-support systems, she said during an official field visit to Syria and an exclusive interview with SANA.
The work spans education, health, nutrition, water access and support for families returning to the country. Russell said her visit focused on reviewing UNICEF operations, strengthening technical partnerships and expanding institutional capacity to address children’s needs.
Essential Services for Children
UNICEF programs in Syria include school rehabilitation, routine childhood immunization campaigns and nutritional support for vulnerable families. Russell also cited the agency’s technical support to reactivate the Jobar water pumping station in Damascus. Its restoration returned access to safe drinking water to more than 1 million residents in the capital and surrounding countryside.
Quality education matters. So do healthcare and sanitation. Russell said access to quality education, primary healthcare, clean water and adequate sanitation remains fundamental to children’s well-being and development. Formal schooling, she added, is important to children’s long-term economic prospects.
The agency’s work extends beyond primary education. UNICEF provides vocational skills training and youth empowerment programs, Russell said, describing investment in children as essential to Syria’s recovery. She reaffirmed UNICEF’s commitment to strengthening government capacity and institutional systems so they can better serve children.
Return and Reintegration
Every refugee or displaced person Russell had met expressed a strong desire to return home, she said. She described facilitating families’ voluntary return to Syria as critical, while identifying support for state institutions helping returnees reintegrate into normal life as a key challenge, particularly for children.
Her remarks placed government capacity among the central issues in delivering assistance. UNICEF achieves its strongest results when it works directly with national governments, Russell said, because they bear ultimate responsibility for their young populations.
She described UNICEF’s partnership with Syrian authorities as strong and expressed appreciation for continued coordination in health, education and child protection. The agency draws on global expertise and long-standing experience in Syria to support children across the country, she said.
Partnership and Recovery
Russell said she had seen a strong sense of optimism and enormous potential across Syria. She called on international partners to work together to create an environment where children can grow and thrive. UNICEF, she said, remains committed to helping secure a better future for Syria’s next generation.
The figure she cited—6.9 million children in urgent need of humanitarian assistance—came alongside the agency’s efforts to restore services and strengthen institutions. Those efforts include school rehabilitation, immunization, nutrition support, vocational training, youth empowerment and technical assistance for the Jobar water pumping station.
Children’s needs reach beyond immediate services, Russell’s account emphasized. Education, healthcare, clean water and sanitation affect children’s development, while formal schooling can shape their long-term economic prospects. UNICEF is working with Syrian authorities and local partners on those areas, as well as supporting returning families and helping children reintegrate into normal life.