UNICEF sends 6-point agenda to G7 Summit

NaijaAgroNet

As the 43^rd G7 Summit gets underway in Italy, the United Nations Child Fund (UNICEF) has sent a six-point agenda to the governments across the world for action to protect refugee and migrant children and ensure their wellbeing, reports NaijaAgroNet.

The 43rd G7 summit, NaijaAgroNet gathered would hold between May 26 and 27, 2017 in Taormina (ME), Sicily, Italy.

Disclosing this, UNICEF Deputy Executive Director Justin Forsyth, said the call has become imperative for the governments to adopt its six-point agenda due to global rise in refugee and migrant children since 2010.

 “These children need a real commitment from governments around the world to ensure their safety throughout their journeys. Leaders gathering next week at the G7 should lead this effort by being the first to commit to our six-point agenda for action,” Forsyth said.

The UNICEF agenda, Forsyth said, include protection of child refugees and migrants, particularly unaccompanied children, from exploitation and violence;  End the detention of children seeking refugee status or migrating, by introducing a range of practical alternatives; and keep families together as the best way to protect children and give children legal status.

In addition, UNICEF agenda comprised keeping all refugee and migrant children learning and give them access to health and other quality services; Press for action on the underlying causes of large scale movements of refugees and migrants; and Promote measures to combat xenophobia, discrimination and marginalization in countries of transit and destination. 

Further, UNICEF also urged the public to stand in solidarity with children uprooted by war, violence and poverty, by supporting the six-point agenda for action.

NaijaAgroNet recalls that UNICEF promotes the rights and wellbeing of every child, and works in 190 countries and territories to translate that commitment into practical action, focusing special effort on reaching the most vulnerable and excluded children, to the benefit of all children, everywhere.

Isaac Oyimah/GEE

... Linking agrobiz, sustainable environs, people & technology

Refugee, migrant children traveling alone rose to five-fold – UNICEF

NaijaAgroNet:

The global number of refugee and migrant children moving alone has reached a record high, increasing nearly five-fold since 2010, UNICEF said in a new report made available to NaijaAgroNet.

At least some 300,000 unaccompanied and separated children were recorded in some 80 countries in the combined years of 2015 and 2016, up from 66,000 in 2010 and 2011, reports NaijaAgroNet.

The report entitled ‘A Child is a Child: Protecting children on the move from violence, abuse and exploitation’ was recently presented at a global snapshot of refugee and migrant children, the motivations behind their journeys and the risks they face along the way.

The report also showed that an increasing number of these children are taking highly dangerous routes, often at the mercy of smugglers and traffickers, to reach their destinations, clearly justifying the need for a global protection system to keep them safe from exploitation, abuse and death.   

UNICEF Deputy Executive Director Justin Forsyth said that one child moving alone is one too many, and yet today, there are a staggering number of children doing just that, stressing that as adults are failing to protect them.

“Ruthless smugglers and traffickers are exploiting their vulnerability for personal gain, helping children to cross borders, only to sell them into slavery and forced prostitution. It is unconscionable that we are not adequately defending children from these predators,” Forsyth said.

The report includes the story of Mary, a 17-year-old unaccompanied minor from Nigeria, who experienced the trauma of being trafficked firsthand during her horrific journey through Libya to Italy. 

When describing the smuggler turned trafficker who offered to help her, she said, “Everything (he) said, that we would be treated well, and that we would be safe, it was all wrong. It was a lie.” Mary was trapped in Libya for more than three months where she was abused. “He said to me if I didn’t sleep with him he would not bring me to Europe. He raped me.”

Uj N. Dominic/GEE

... Linking agrobiz, sustainable environs, people & technology

UNICEF welcomes release of abducted 82 Chibok school girls

NaijaAgroNet:

The United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) has welcomed the last Saturday release of some 82 Chibok school girls abducted by the Boko Haram terrorist group, reports NaijaAgroNet.

As gathered by NaijaAgroNet the girls were released in exchange of Boko Haram members arrested by the Federal Government.

Emergency Communications Specialist at UNICEF Nigeria, Harriet Dwyer said that it is heartening to know that the girls will be returning to their families who have been waiting for this day.

“They will face a long and difficult process to rebuild their lives after the indescribable horror and trauma they have suffered at the hands of Boko Haram.

“UNICEF is on standby to support the Nigerian authorities to provide the comprehensive psychosocial support and other specialized services needed. We will help reunite the girls with their families and make sure they can continue their education in a safe environment. Already staff at a UNICEF supported health clinic have been supporting immediate efforts to identify the girls and conduct medical check-ups before their onward transport.

“UNICEF calls on Boko Haram to end all grave violations against children, especially the abduction of children and the sexual abuse and forced marriage of girls.

“We commend the government for this important achievement in helping to protect children impacted by the conflict in northeast Nigeria but remain deeply concerned for the thousands of women and children still held in captivity by Boko Haram. Greater efforts must be made to bring them all to safety and home to their families.

“UNICEF has a comprehensive response to help children who have been affected by the conflict in the Lake Chad Basin and works with national authorities to support hundreds of children and women who have escaped or been released from Boko Haram. Every child is unique and requires different levels of support, so there is no standard formula or defined timeframe for these children to recover. 

UNICEF is committed to doing whatever it takes, as long as it takes to help these children recover a sense of normalcy with our available resources,” Dwyer said.

Isaac Oyimah/GEE

... Linking agrobiz, sustainable environs, people & technology

Despite progress, UNICEF says millions of children still unimmunization

NaijaAgroNet:

The UNICEF procured 2.5 billion doses of vaccines for children in nearly 100 countries in 2016, reaching almost half of the world’s children under the age of five, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Releasing this figures, during World Immunization Week, UNICEF the largest buyer of vaccines for children in the world, noted that Nigeria, Pakistan and Afghanistan, remained the three polio-endemic countries.

UNICEF also  each received more doses of vaccines than any other country, with almost 450 million doses of vaccines procured to children in Nigeria, 395 million in Pakistan and over 150 million in Afghanistan. UNICEF is the lead procurement agency for the Global Polio Eradication Initiative.

Access to immunization has led to a dramatic decrease in deaths of children under five from vaccine-preventable diseases, and has brought the world closer to eradicating polio. Between 2000 and 2015, under five deaths due to measles declined by 85 per cent and those due to neonatal tetanus by 83 per cent. A proportion of the 47 per cent reduction in pneumonia deaths and 57 per cent reduction in diarrhea deaths in this time is also attributed to vaccines.

Yet an estimated 19.4 million children around the world still miss out on full vaccinations every year. Around two thirds of all unvaccinated children live in conflict-affected countries. Weak health systems, poverty and social inequities also mean that 1 in 5 children under five is still not reached with life-saving vaccines.

“All children, no matter where they live or what their circumstances are, have the right to survive and thrive, safe from deadly diseases,” said Dr. Robin Nandy, Chief of Immunization at UNICEF. “Since 1990, immunization has been a major reason for the substantial drop in child mortality, but despite this progress, 1.5 million children still die from vaccine preventable diseases every year.”

Inequalities persist between rich and poor children. In countries where 80 per cent of the world’s under-five child deaths occur, over half of the poorest children are not fully vaccinated. Globally, the poorest children are nearly twice as likely to die before the age of five as the richest.

“In addition to children living in rural communities where access to services is limited, more and more children living in overcrowded cities and slum dwellings are also missing out on vital vaccinations,” said Nandy. “Overcrowding, poverty, poor hygiene and sanitation as well as inadequate nutrition and health care increase the risk of diseases such as pneumonia, diarrhea and measles in these communities; diseases that are easily preventable with vaccines.”

By 2030, an estimated 1 in 4 people will live in urban poor communities, mainly in Africa and Asia, meaning the focus and investment of immunization services must be tailored to the specific needs of these communities and children, UNICEF said.

... Linking agrobiz, sustainable environs, people & technology

Boko Haram: UNICEF commends FG on release of over 500 women, children

NaijaAgroNet:

UNICEF has welcomed the release of nearly six hundred women, children and elderly men from Giwa military barracks in Maiduguri, Borno State, Nigeria, reports NaijaAgroNet.

“The action of the Nigerian army today is a major step towards the protection of children affected by the ongoing crisis. It provides hope in a conflict that continues to have an enormous impact on people’s lives.’’

“These children were held under administrative custody on alleged association with Boko Haram militants. They are victims of the conflict and it is crucial that they receive medical care, psychosocial support and other basic services that will help them to regain their dignity.”

“Once that process of recovery has started, we can help them to return to their families and to school or learn new skills that will give them some hope for the future.”

UNICEF continues to work with the relevant authorities to access children who are held for screening in order to safeguard their care and protection.

When military screening is needed, children should only be held as a measure of last resort and for the shortest time possible in accordance with national and international standards. These children are – first and foremost – victims of the conflict and require support to recover from their experiences and reintegrate with their families and communities.

Uboshe Uboshe/GEE

... Linking agrobiz, sustainable environs, people & technology

600m children to live with limited water resources by 2040 - UNICEF

NaijaAgroNet: 

An estimated 600 million children will be living in areas where water demand far outstrips supply by 2040, according to a UNICEF, reports NaijaAgroNet.

This, UNICEF also said reflects that 1 in 4 children worldwide will be suffering from water scarcity in the next 23 years.

UNICEF, NaijaAgroNet noted in the report entitled, Thirsting for a Future: Water and children in a changing climate, looked at the threats to children’s lives and wellbeing caused by depleted sources of safe water and the ways climate change will intensify these risks in coming years.

UNICEF Executive Director, Mr. Anthony Lake said that water is elemental; without it, nothing could grow.

“But around the world, millions of children lack access to safe water -- endangering their lives, undermining their health, and jeopardizing their futures. This crisis will only grow unless we take collective action now,” said.

According to the report, 37 countries, including Nigeria, are currently facing extremely high levels of water stress, which occurs when more than 80 per cent of the water available for agriculture, industry and domestic use is withdrawn annually. Warmer temperatures, rising sea levels, increased floods, droughts and melting ice affect the quality and availability of water.

For Nigeria, the greatest challenge, NaijaAgroNet gathered, is the availability of physical infrastructure to harness rainfall and ground water effectively.

UNICEF’s Chief of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene, Kannan Nadar, pointed out that there are huge variations in rainfall between north and south Nigeria, making it all the more important to better plan and manage water resources to minimise the impact of floods and drought.

“In Nigeria, as we work towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goal of reaching everyone with access to safe, functional, affordable and accessible water, we must manage water resources more efficiently to meet the needs of Nigeria’s growing population and economic development,” Nadar said.

NaijaAgroNet recalled that population growth, coupled with increased water consumption, and higher demand for water largely due to industrialization and urbanization, are draining water resources worldwide. Conflicts in many parts of the world also threaten children’s access to safe water. 

Isaac Oyimah/GEE

... Linking agrobiz, sustainable environs, people & technology

FAO, UNICEF, WFP deploy massive relief operation

NaijaAgroNet:

The trio of the United Nations Agencies, the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), United Nation Children Fund (UNICEF) and World Food Programme (WFP), with other partners, have conducted massive relief operations since the conflict began, and intensified those efforts throughout 2016 to mitigate the worst effects of the humanitarian crisis, reports NaijaAgroNet.

For example, the said that in Northern Bahr El Ghazal state, among others, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) assessment team found that humanitarian relief had lessened the risk of famine there.

Also, FAO has provided emergency livelihood kits to more than 2.3 million people to help them fish or plant vegetables. FAO has also vaccinated more than 6 million livestock such as goats and sheep to prevent further loss.

While WFP continued to scale up its support in South Sudan as humanitarian needs increase, and plans to provide food and nutrition assistance to 4.1 million people through the hunger season in South Sudan this year.

This, NaijaAgroNet gathered, includes lifesaving emergency food, cash and nutrition assistance for people displaced and affected by conflict, as well as community-based recovery or resilience programs and school meals. 

In 2016, WFP reached a record 4 million people in South Sudan with food assistance - including cash assistance amounting to US$13.8 million, and more than 265,000 metric tons of food and nutrition supplies. It is the largest number of people assisted by WFP in South Sudan since independence, despite problems resulting from the challenging context.

UNICEF aims to treat 207,000 children for severe acute malnutrition in 2017. Working with over 40 partners and in close collaboration with WFP, UNICEF is supporting 620 outpatient therapeutic programme sites and about 50 inpatient therapeutic sites across the country to provide children with urgently needed treatment.

Through a rapid response mechanism carried out jointly with WFP, UNICEF continues to reach communities in the most remote locations. These rapid response missions treat thousands of children for malnutrition as well as provide them with immunization services, safe water and sanitation which also prevent recurring malnutrition.

Uboshe Uboshe/GEE

... Linking agrobiz, sustainable environs, people & technology

UNICEF says Osun, Ebonyi top chart in Female Genital Mutilation, calls for actions

NaijaAgroNet:

The United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) has listed two Nigerian states of Osun, and Ebonyi as those topping chart in rates of Female Genital Mutilation and Cutting (FGM/C) reports NaijaAgroNet.

Disclosing this in commemoration of 2017 International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation on Monday, February 6, the UNICEF Representative in Nigeria Mohamed Fall said that there are some five states in Nigeria with over 60 per cent FGM/C, with Osun and Ebonyi highest at 77 and 74 per cent respectively.

According to the 2013 National Demographic and Health Survey, UNICEF noted that the other states are Ekiti, 72 per cent; Imo, 68 per cent; and Oyo, 66 per cent.

Hence, UNICEF called on governments at all levels, civil society organisations, and traditional and religious leaders to join together and end the scourge of Female Genital Mutilation and Cutting in Nigeria.

“Every study and every bit of evidence we have shows there is absolutely no benefit to mutilate or to cut any girl or woman for non-medical reasons. It is a practice that can cause severe physical and psychological harm” Fall lamented.

UNICEF also explained that FGM/C comprises all procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, or other cutting of or injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons. It is recognized internationally as a violation of the human rights of girls and women.

NaijaAgroNet recalls that in February last year, Wife of the President Mrs. Aisha Buhari launched a national campaign to end FGM/C, calling on all parties to work together to halt this harmful practice. Her call underlines the need for collective action at every level.

Isaac Oyimah/GEE

... Linking agrobiz, sustainable environs, people & technology

Malnutrition poses ‘silent threat’ to children, UNICEF, partners send 2017 appeal

NaijaAgroNet:

An estimated 48 million children living through some of the world’s worst conflicts and other humanitarian emergencies will benefit from UNICEF’s 2017 appeal, which was launched on January 31, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Chief of Communication, UNICEF, Doune Porter, made this disclosure to NaijaAgroNet, saying that from Syria to Yemen and Iraq, from South Sudan to Nigeria, children are under direct attack, their homes, schools and communities in ruins, their hopes and futures hanging in the balance.

“In total, almost one in four of the world’s children lives in a country affected by conflict or disaster,” she said.

Buttressing this position, she quoted the UNICEF Director of Emergency Programmes, Manuel Fontaine, as saying that “In country after country, war, natural disaster and climate change are driving ever more children from their homes, exposing them to violence, disease and exploitation.”

UNICEF’s Humanitarian Action for Children, Porter pointed out had set out the agency’s 2017 appeal totaling $3.3 billion, and its goals in providing children with access to safe water, nutrition, education, health and protection in 48 countries across the globe. Stressing that an estimated 7.5 million children will face severe acute malnutrition across the majority of appeal countries, including almost half a million each in northeast Nigeria and Yemen.

“Malnutrition is a silent threat to millions of children. The damage it does can be irreversible, robbing children of their mental and physical potential. In its worst form, severe malnutrition can be deadly,” said Fontaine.   

UNICEF pointed out that the largest single component of the appeal is for children and families caught up in the Syria conflict, soon to enter its seventh year. UNICEF is seeking a total of $1.4 billion to support Syrian children inside Syria and those living as refugees in neighbouring countries.

Isaac Oyimah/GEE

... Linking agrobiz, sustainable environs, people & technology

300m children exposed to toxic air says UNICEF

NaijaAgroNet:

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has revealed that an estimated 300 million children globally are exposed to toxic air through living in areas with outdoor air contaminated in excess of six times over international pollution guidelines, reports NaijaAgroNet.

This was contained in the latest UNICEF report tagged ‘Clear the air for children’  which also indicated  could cause serious health damage, including harming their developing brains.

UNICEF’s Executive Director Anthony Lake told NaijaAgroNet that pollutants do not only harm children’s developing lungs  as they could actually cross the blood-brain barrier and permanently damage their developing brains, thus, their futures.

“Air pollution is a major contributing factor in the deaths of around 600,000 children under five every year – and it threatens the lives and futures of millions more every day,” he added. “No society can afford to ignore air pollution,” he said.

NaijaAgroNet reports that these findings came a week ahead of the 22nd Conference of the Parties (COP 22) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Marrakesh, Morocco, where UNICEF is calling on world leaders to take urgent action to cut air pollution in their countries.

Further, NaijaAgroNet reports that using satellite imagery, the report further shows that around two billion children live in areas where outdoor air pollution, caused by factors such as vehicle emissions, heavy use of fossil fuels, dust and burning of waste, exceeds minimum air quality guidelines set by the World Health Organization (WHO).

South Asia has the largest number of children living in these areas, at 620 million, with Africa following with 520 million children, and the East Asia and Pacific region with 450 million children living in areas that exceed guideline limits.

Remmy Nweke/ED, Ops

... Linking agrobiz, sustainable environs, people & technology

Lack of hand washing, kills over 300,000 in 2015 – UNICEF

NaijaAgroNet:

The spate of cholera in aftermath of Hurricane Matthew in Haiti and with a new outbreak of war-in Yemen, have made it difficult for children, families and communities to make washing hands with soap a habit to help prevent the spread of diseases, says United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), reports NaijaAgroNet.

This is coming as UNICEF said over 300,000 lives should have been saved if hand washing has become a habit globally.

Chief of Communication for UNICEF Nigeria, Ms Doune Porter, told NaijaAgroNet that as the world celebrate the Global Handwashing Day, UNICEF has discovered that, in 2015 alone, over 300,000 children under the age of five died globally from diarrhoeal infections linked to poor access to safe drinking water and sanitation – a rate of over 800 per day.

“Yet many of these deaths could have been prevented through the simple act of handwashing with soap,” she said.

Porter quoted the UNICEF’s global head of water, sanitation and hygiene Sanjay Wijesekera as saying that every year, 1.4 million children are dying from largely preventable diseases like pneumonia and diarrhea.

“These are staggering numbers, but they could be greatly reduced by working with children and families to adopt a very straightforward solution – handwashing. We know, for example, that handwashing with soap before meals and after using the toilet could reduce the incidence of diarrhoeal infections by 40 per cent,” Sanjay said.

In addition, NaijaAgroNet gathered that a recent survey conducted by UNICEF in Nigeria found that about 10 per cent of households did not know about the critical times to wash hands and could not demonstrate proper handwashing techniques.

The survey, Porter further said revealed that only 12 per cent of households have handwashing facilities with soap or ash located at their latrines.

Isaac Oyimah/GEE

... Linking agrobiz, sustainable environs, people & technology

World Breastfeeding Week 2016: Exclusive breastfeeding, key to fight child malnutrition – UNICEF, MeCAM

NaijaAgroNet:

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and Media Coalition Against child Malnutrition (MeCAM) have declared that exclusive breastfeeding is key to fight against child malnutrition, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Also, NaijaAgroNet gathered that they stressed that exclusively breastfeeding is more resilient in fighting malnutrition, especially in children.

Speaking ahead of the 2016 World Breastfeeding Week, which commenced August 1 through August 7, the organisations agreed that it is encouraging to always engage members of the media on issues concerning child malnutrition and more specifically on exclusive breastfeeding in order to drum support for the campaign.

The Communication Specialist at UNICEF Nigeria, Mr. Geoffrey Njoku, speaking on the week, charged MeCAM members to be alive to their responsibilities of stimulating support for yet another year and season of World Breastfeed Week.

UNICEF, he said, looks forward to members of MeCAM engaging through the media across its membership and country at large.

This, he said, could come in form of news reports, programmes, features, special reports, editorials, opinion pieces and commentaries.

In a related development, the National Coordinator, MeCAM Nigeria, Mr. Remmy Nweke, assured that the media advocacy group, especially at this era of Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) would offer its best on the breastfeeding campaign 2016 so as to give it a boost.

Nweke quoted the World Health Organisation (WHO) as saying that170 countries would be commemorating the Innocenti Declaration signed in August 1990 by government policymakers, WHO, UNICEF and other organizations to protect, promote and support breastfeeding.

Breastfeeding, WHO noted, is the best way to provide infants with the nutrients they need.

Also, WHO recommended exclusive breastfeeding starting within one hour after birth until a baby is six months old.

“Nutritious complementary foods should then be added while continuing to breastfeed for up to two years or beyond,” WHO officials pointed out.

Nweke further quoted WHO experts as saying that the World Breastfeeding Week is celebrated every year in over 170 countries to inspire breastfeeding and improve the health of babies across the world.

Noteworthy, Nweke said, is that in September 2015, the world's leaders committed to 17 goals aimed at ending poverty, protecting the planet and ensuring prosperity.

“Together, they​ form the​ ​Sustainable Development​ Goals. We all have a part to play in achieving these goals​ by 2030​,” he declared.

The World Breastfeeding Week 2016 theme is about how breastfeeding is a key element in getting us to think about how to value our wellbeing from the start of life, how to respect each other and care for the world we share. 

Isaac Oyimah/GEE
... Linking agrobiz, sustainable environs, people & technology

UNICEF says: Not deterred by convoy ambush, aid continues in northeast Nigeria

NaijaAgroNet:

 

The United Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF) has said its not deterred due to attack on Friday of its humanitarian convoy in the northeast Nigeria, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Chief of Communications, at UNICEF Nigeria, Doune Porter, said aïd has continued to assist millions of conflict-affected children in northeast Nigeria, despite the attack on a humanitarian convoy.

As a result of the attack, in which one UNICEF staff member was injured, travel by UN staff to high risk areas has been temporarily suspended.

“We are working at full strength in the Borno state capital Maiduguri,” stressed UNICEF Nigeria Representative Jean Gough. “We continue to call for increased efforts to reach people in desperate need across the state. We cannot let this heartless attack divert any of us from reaching the more than two million people who are in dire need of immediate humanitarian assistance.”

UNICEF has called on donors and humanitarian organizations to scale-up the response to the emerging disaster in Borno state, which is the most affected by the conflict with Boko Haram.

Before the attack, security conditions had been improving in several areas.

“Our teams were finding people living on the brink of disaster,” said Jean Gough, “The violence has disrupted farming and markets, destroyed food stocks, and damaged or destroyed health and water facilities. We absolutely have to reach more of these communities.”

UNICEF estimates that 244,000 children will suffer from severe acute malnutrition this year in Borno state alone and if they are not reached with treatment, one in five of them will die.

UNICEF has provided two million people with health services and treated 56,000 children for malnutrition in the three conflict-affected states of northeast Nigeria. A quarter of a million people have improved access to clean water, and over 200,000 children have been able to go back to school.

Despite the temporary suspension of travel to high risk areas, UNICEF plans to scale-up its response in Borno state substantially. At the beginning of the year, UNICEF appealed for US$55 million for its emergency work, of which US$23 million has so far been received.

Isaac Oyimah/GEE

... Linking agrobiz, sustainable environs, people & technology

UNICEF says boys, girls equal attendance in primary schools in 129 countries

NaijaAgroNet:

In addition, the report noted that significant progress has been made in saving children’s lives, getting children into school and lifting people out of poverty, reports NaijaAgroNet.

The global boys and girls now attend primary school in equal numbers in 129 countries, according to the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), just as the under-five mortality rates have been more than halved since 1990, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Although the number of people living in extreme poverty worldwide is almost half what it was in the 1990s, UNICEF said, progress has been neither even nor fair.

UNICEF in The State of the World’s Children special reports also said, the poorest children are twice as likely to die before their fifth birthday and to be chronically malnourished than the richest.

“Across much of South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, children born to mothers with no education are almost 3 times more likely to die before they are 5 than those born to mothers with a secondary education. And girls from the poorest households are twice as likely to marry as children than girls from the wealthiest households,” UNICEF lamented.

Nowhere across the globe, UNICEF report said, is the outlook grimmer than in sub-Saharan Africa, where at least 247 million children – or 2 in 3 – live in multidimensional poverty, deprived of what they need to survive and develop, and where nearly 60 per cent of 20- to 24-year-olds from the poorest fifth of the population have had less than four years of schooling.

Although education plays a unique role in levelling the playing field for children, the number of children who do not attend school has increased since 2011, and a significant proportion of those who do go to school are not learning.

Further, the revealed that about 124 million children today do not go to primary- and lower-secondary school, and almost 2 in 5 who do finish primary school have not learned how to read, write or do simple arithmetic. 

The report equally pointed to evidence that investing in the most vulnerable children can yield immediate and long-term benefits. Cash transfers, for example, have been shown to help children stay in school longer and advance to higher levels of education. On average, each additional year of education a child receives increases his or her adult earnings by about 10 per cent.

“And for each additional year of schooling completed, on average, by young adults in a country, that country’s poverty rates fall by 9 per cent,” official said.

UNICEF said that inequity is neither inevitable, nor insurmountable, arguing that better data on the most vulnerable children, integrated solutions to the challenges children face, innovative ways to address old problems, more equitable investment and increased involvement by communities – all these measures can help level the playing field for children.

... Linking agrobiz, sustainable environs, people & technology

69m children awaiting death from preventable causes - UNICEF

NaijaAgroNet:

Latest study released Tuesday by the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) has raised an alarm that if urgent steps are not taken, an estimated 69 million children across the globe who are under five will die from mostly preventable causes, reports NaijaAgroNet.

UNICEF, in its annual flagship report entitled The State of the World’s Children also said that some 167 million children will live in poverty and 750 million women married out on child-marriage by 2030, which is the target date for the Sustainable Development Goals unless the world refocuses, mostly on the plight of disadvantaged children.

The report, NaijaAgroNet gathered painted a stark picture of what is in store for the world’s poorest children if governments, donors, businesses and international organizations do not accelerate efforts to address their needs.

UNICEF Executive Director, Anthony Lake noted that denying hundreds of millions of children a fair chance in life does more than threaten their futures, particularly by fueling intergenerational cycles of disadvantage, which imperils the future of their societies, stressing “We have a choice: Invest in these children now or allow our world to become still more unequal and divided.”

According to UNICEF, nearly half of the 69 million children who will die before their fifth birthday from mostly preventable causes; More than half of the 60 million children of primary school age who will still be out of school; and   9 out of 10 children living in extreme poverty. 

... Linking agrobiz, sustainable environs, people & technology

South Sudan 3.9m citizens face severe hunger– UN

NaijaAgroNet:

Three United Nations agencies haveraised alarm thatestimated3.9 million South Sudanese now face severe hunger, NaijaAgroNetreports.

These agencies include Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Food Programme (WFP).

This was revealed in a new Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis made available to NaijaAgroNet, which although noted that the number of food insecure households has decreased - as expected - during the harvest season, it is almost 80 per cent higher than in the same period last year, as even people living in states not directly affected by conflict with its long-term effects, erratic rainfall, depleted livelihood options, high food prices, fuel costs and inflation, equally experience the downturn in a generally degraded economic environment.

They called on the parties to the conflict to grant urgent and unrestricted access to Unity State, where a newly released Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis shows that at least 30 000 people are living in extreme conditions and are facing starvation and death.  

Since the war in South Sudan began nearly two years ago, NaijaAgroNet learnt,it is the first time that an IPC analysis has found any parts of the population in phase five (catastrophe) on the five-point IPC scale.

 “This is the start of the harvest and we should be seeing a significant improvement in the food security situation across the country, but unfortunately this is not the case in places like southern Unity State, where people are on the edge of a catastrophe that can be prevented,” said WFP Country Director, ,Joyce Luma. “The people of South Sudan need peace, nutritious food and other humanitarian assistance and livelihood support to survive and rebuild their lives," she stated.

NaijaAgroNet gathered that unless unrestricted humanitarian access is urgently granted, the food insecurity could deteriorate to famine in parts of Unity State, where humanitarian assistance has been hampered by the dreadful violence and lack of access in recent months. Some displaced families say they survive on just one meal a day consisting of only fish and water lilies.

Cyriacus Nnaji/GEE

... Linking agrobiz, sustainable environs, people & technology