Infant and young child feeding in emergencies (IYCF-E) concerns the protection and support of safe and appropriate feeding for infants and young children in all types of emergencies, with the goal of safeguarding their survival, health, and growth. It includes supporting the nutritional needs of infants and young children from birth to the age of two and concerns both breastfed and non-breastfed children, as well as the wellbeing of mothers.
IYCF-E protects breastfeeding alongside safe, diverse, and locally available complementary foods. It is a cross-cutting field, requiring coordination of multiple areas of expertise, and must be integrated into emergency preparedness and response plans.
IFE Core Group
The Infant Feeding in Emergencies (IFE) Core Group is a global collaboration of agencies and individuals that formed in 1999 to address policy guidance and training resource gaps in IYCF-E within humanitarian contexts. The IFE Core Group also acts as the GNC’s Global Thematic Working Group on Infant and Young Child Feeding in Emergencies.
The IFE Core Group does not directly implement programmes. It works to develop guidance and resource materials, document and share lessons learned, and strengthen the capacity of nutrition practitioners to ensure more effective infant and young child feeding support in emergency contexts (IYCF-E). The group’s vision is that all feeding and care of infants and young children is safeguarded to support child survival, growth and development in humanitarian contexts.
IFE Core Group members bring challenges and issues to the collective membership for peer support and guidance to facilitate rapid application of up-to-date experience in operations and to connect on-the-ground experiences with the development of agency and global policy guidance. The IFE Core Group is coordinated by the Emergency Nutrition Network and is guided by a Steering Committee. Members meet monthly and are active contributors to various working groups and task forces.
Key Activities
- Develop and disseminate guidance and resource materials, including the Infant and Young Child Feeding in Emergencies Operational Guidance
- Document lessons learned, challenges, and gaps in Infant and Young Child Feeding in Emergencies
- Develop and implement advocacy and communication strategies to ensure more effective infant and young child feeding support in emergency contexts
- Host and participate in key meetings and webinars
Useful links
- NEW resource on Life-Saving Interventions
- IFE Core Group Resources
- IFE Core Group Past Webinars and Upcoming Events
- IYCF-E Hub (A global portal to the most relevant resources related to Infant and Young Child Nutrition in humanitarian contexts)
- IYCF-E Research Repository (An overview of peer-reviewed journal articles on Infant and Young Child Feeding in emergency contexts)
- IYCF-E: Ten Years of Progress (2012-2022)
