Early childhood development care: nurturing care in humanitarian crises
- Page updated onApril 22, 2026
Pregnancy and the first three years of a child's life is the period of child development when they are most vulnerable to infections, hunger, and malnutrition (both acute and chronic). In this regard, the main protection they have comes from the people who care for them: their mothers, fathers, and families. However, in humanitarian emergencies and as a result of insecurity, displacement, and lack of access to essential services, caregivers lose the support systems they need to assist them.
Table of contents:
The nurturing care framework: five dimensions for early childhood development.
With the necessary resources, environments, and opportunities, this period represents an important window of opportunity for child development (WHO & UNICEF, 2021)World Health Organization & UNICEF. (2021). Nurturing care handbook. World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240058415. However, in order to develop their full physical and cognitive potential, the care these children receive must cover at least five dimensions (WHO et al., 2018)World Health Organization, UNICEF, & World Bank Group. (2018). Nurturing care for early childhood development: A framework for helping children survive and thrive to transform health and human potential. World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789241514064:
- Attentive and affectionate care. Children also need their mothers, fathers, and other caregivers to be present and to engage with them warmly. This helps them establish an important emotional and affective bond (Britto et al., 2017)Britto, P. R., Lye, S. J., Proulx, K., Yousafzai, A. K., Matthews, S. G., Vaivada, T., Perez-Escamilla, R., Rao, N., Ip, P., Fernald, L. C. H., MacMillan, H., Hanson, M., Wachs, T. D., Yao, H., Yoshikawa, H., Cerezo, A., Leckman, J. F., & Bhutta, Z. A. (2017). Nurturing care: Promoting early childhood development. The Lancet, 389(10064), 91–102. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(16)31390-3.
- Protection and safety. A safe environment is not only one in which there is food and water security or dignified living conditions. It is also one in which children are protected from abuse, physical punishment, and neglect.
- Opportunities for learning. How children interact with their environment determines how they learn to relate, play, move, imagine and create.
- Health. Children need sufficient activity and sleep, attention to their needs, and their health situation. In addition, they must have access to preventive and curative health services and live in adequate hygienic conditions that minimize the risks of infection.
- Nutrition. The nutritional status of these children will depend largely on adequate feeding adapted to their age and responsive to their demand. From birth until six months of age, this feeding should ideally consist of exclusive breastfeeding. From six months onwards, it requires continued breastfeeding and the progressive introduction of nutritious and safe complementary foods. If at risk of malnutrition in their first months of life, or if suffering from acute malnutrition, they will also need early diagnosis and access to treatment (UNICEF, 2025)UNICEF. (2025). Critical child development interventions for wasting programmes in humanitarian action. https://www.childwasting.org/critical-child-development-interventions-wasting-programmes-humanitarian-action.
Supporting caregivers is key to early child development
Ensuring child development is not possible without paying special attention to the wellbeing and care of caregivers. They often go through very adverse situations in the absence of social support and essential services, and have significant needs that must also be addressed. These include aspects related to their emotional wellbeing and mental health, and even their safety (for example, in cases of gender-based violence) (UNICEF, 2024)UNICEF. (2024). Caring for the caregiver. https://www.unicef.org/documents/caring-caregiver.
The support provided to these individuals, in addition to covering their basic needs and protection, must also contribute to their ability and confidence to face difficult times and solve problems. Therefore, it should be done with a gender perspective. This allows for challenging social norms and established roles that place the burden of caregiving on mothers and women. Additionally, it helps promote the shared responsibility of men.
Parenting support interventions in humanitarian contexts make it possible to provide education about child development and the importance of adequate nutrition, health, play, hygiene, and education. Caregivers may also need information about behavioural changes throughout growth, techniques for care that is responsive to children's expressed needs, and skills for interpersonal communication and conflict and problem resolution (without applying physical punishment or using violence) (Backhaus et al., 2024)Backhaus, S., Blackwell, A., & Gardner, F. (2024). The effectiveness of parenting interventions in reducing violence against children in humanitarian settings in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Child Abuse & Neglect, 162(Pt 2), 106850. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2024.106850. Sometimes they can also be supported with guidance on addressing trauma and loss, or with advice on relaxation and stress management techniques. Some of these interventions can be delivered through home visits, group meetings with caregivers in the community, the creation of mutual support networks, or through the strengthening of existing social services.
🧠 Let's pause and reflect
Given that primary health care services are often the main point of contact in emergencies, in what practical ways can we reimagine routine consultations to function as platforms for promoting nurturing care without overburdening healthcare staff?
- Think and write your answer.
- Click on «Copy and open».
- Paste to receive feedback.
📚 This is the NotebookLM for this topic. It uses only carefully selected references. | What is NotebookLM?
Child-friendly spaces provide protection, play and psychosocial support in emergencies
Some of the key elements for child development in emergencies can be addressed through child friendly spaces (World Vision International & IFRC, 2018)World Vision International & IFRC Reference Centre for Psychosocial Support. (2018). Operational guidance for child friendly spaces in humanitarian settings. https://pscentre.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Operational-Guidance-for-Child-friendly-spaces-low-res.pdf. These inclusive safe spaces for children of different ages offer them the opportunity to meet and play with other children in an age-appropriate way, always with the presence of professionals accompanying them. They also enable educational activities that help restore a relative sense of "normality" in the midst of adversity. These spaces also contribute to child protection against abuse, exploitation, and violence, allow for psychosocial support activities to develop self-esteem and emotional regulation, and provide support for caregivers.
Estos espacios juegan un papel especialmente importante en los primeros meses de la crisis y el desplazamiento, al menos hasta que las escuelas y guarderías vuelven a funcionar. En ocasiones, también pueden continuar complementando los servicios existentes en la comunidad, después de la emergencia, con otras actividades. Sin embargo, existen grandes diferencias en la calidad y adaptación de estas iniciativas, que no siempre demuestran resultados (Hermosilla et al., 2019)Hermosilla, S., Metzler, J., Savage, K., Musa, M., & Ager, A. (2019). Child friendly spaces impact across five humanitarian settings: A meta-analysis. BMC Public Health, 19(1), 576. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-019-6939-2.
Some of these spaces can be adapted to meet the specific needs of younger children, including infants, and their mothers (or other caregivers). Furthermore, this intervention model allows for addressing the protection of breastfeeding and feeding during these critical early stages of extreme vulnerability.
References
- UNICEF. (2024). Caring for the caregiver. https://www.unicef.org/documents/caring-caregiver
- UNICEF. (2025). Critical child development interventions for wasting programmes in humanitarian action. https://www.childwasting.org/critical-child-development-interventions-wasting-programmes-humanitarian-action
- World Health Organization & UNICEF. (2021). Nurturing care handbook. World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240058415
- World Health Organization, UNICEF, & World Bank Group. (2018). Nurturing care for early childhood development: A framework for helping children survive and thrive to transform health and human potential. World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789241514064
- World Vision International & IFRC Reference Centre for Psychosocial Support. (2018). Operational guidance for child friendly spaces in humanitarian settings. https://pscentre.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Operational-Guidance-for-Child-friendly-spaces-low-res.pdf
NotebookLM
You can review my literature references on early childhood development care with this NotebookLM, an artificial intelligence-based research assistant. Do you want to know more?
How to cite this page
Abarca, B. (April 22, 2026). Early childhood development care: nurturing care in humanitarian crises. Salud Everywhere. https://saludeverywhere.com/en/health-in-humanitarian-crises/care-for-early-childhood-development/