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.

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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

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Diarrhoea kills 800 children daily - UN

NaijaAgroNet:

Over 800 children under five years die every day around the world from diarrhoea linked to inadequate water, sanitation and hygiene, reports NaijaAgroNet.

With the population growth, increased water consumption, and higher demand for water largely due to industrialization and urbanization, NaijaAgroNet gathered have gravely paved the way to draining of water resources worldwide, in addition to conflicts in many parts of the world also threaten children’s access to safe water.

As said by UNICEF in its Thirsting for a Future: Water and children in a changing climate, the above factors force children to use unsafe water, which exposes them to potentially deadly diseases like cholera and diarrhoea.

“Many children in drought-affected areas spend hours every day collecting water, missing out on a chance to go to school. Girls are especially vulnerable to attack during these times,” UNICEF official said in a press statement made available to NaijaAgroNet.

The poorest and most vulnerable children, NaijaAgroNet reports, will be most impacted by an increase in water stress, as millions of them already live in areas with low access to safe water and sanitation.

The report also noted among others that globally, women and girls spend 200 million hours collecting water every day.

UNICEF further said that the impact of climate change on water sources is not inevitable, UNICEF says. The report concludes with a series of recommendations that can help curb the impact of climate change on the lives of children.

For UNICEF Executive Director, Mr. Anthony Lake, such measures should include governments need to plan for changes in water availability and demand in the coming years; Above all, it means prioritizing the most vulnerable children’s access to safe water above other water needs to maximize social and health outcomes.

Climate risks, he said, should be integrated into all water and sanitation-related policies and services, and investments should to target high-risk populations; Stressing that businesses need to work with communities to prevent contamination and depletion of safe water sources.

Lake equally charged communities to explore ways to diversify water sources and to increase their capacity to store water safely.

“In a changing climate, we must change the way we work to reach those who are most vulnerable. One of the most effective ways we can do that is safeguarding their access to safe water,” Lake said.

Isaac Oyimah/GEE 

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Above 1m children acutely malnourished in South Sudan

NaijaAgroNet:

Over 1 million children are estimated to be acutely malnourished in South Sudan, reports NaijaAgroNet, according to the UNICEF Representative in South Sudan, Jeremy Hopkins.

In addition, Hopkins disclosed that over a quarter of a million children are already severely malnourished.

“If we do not reach these children with urgent aid many of them will die. We urge all parties to allow humanitarian organizations unrestricted access to the affected populations, so we can assist the most vulnerable and prevent yet another humanitarian catastrophe," he said.

NaijaAgroNet gathered that this is coming as the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) recent report estimated that 14 of the 23 assessed counties have global acute malnutrition (GAM) at or above the emergency threshold of 15 per cent, with some areas as high as 42 per cent.  

For the World Food Programme (WFP) Country Director, Joyce Luma, this Sudan situation is a man-made crisis.

"This famine is man-made. WFP and the entire humanitarian community have been trying with all our might to avoid this catastrophe, mounting a humanitarian response of a scale that quite frankly would have seemed impossible three years ago. But we have also warned that there is only so much that humanitarian assistance can achieve in the absence of meaningful peace and security, both for relief workers and the crisis-affected people they serve," she said, insisting "We will continue doing everything we possibly can to hold off and reverse the spread of famine."

Across the country, she noted, three years of conflict have severely undermined crop production and rural livelihoods.

“The upsurge in violence since July 2016 has further devastated food production, including in previously stable areas. Soaring inflation - up to 800 percent year-on-year - and market failure have also hit areas that traditionally rely on markets to meet food needs. Urban populations are also struggling to cope with massive price rises on basic food items,” she said.

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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.

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UNICEF@70: We’re not tired of bringing succor to world children

NaijaAgroNet:

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has said its not tired of bringing succor to the suffering world children, just as it celebrates seven decades of service to humanity, reports NaijaAgroNet.

The Executive Director, UNICEF, Mr. Anthony Lake made this known as it marks the 70^th anniversary of UNICEF founding, saying its seen as celebration of the immense progress made for the world’s children.

This is coming as NaijaAgroNet reports that UNICEF renewed the urgent call to reach millions of children whose lives and futures are endangered by conflict, crisis, poverty, inequality and discrimination.

“UNICEF was founded after World War II to bring help and hope to all children at risk or in need – no matter which country they lived in or what role that country played in the war.  Our mission is no less urgent and universal today. With so many children around the world in so much need, we are recommitting ourselves to delivering results for every child,” Lake said.

The organization, he noted, was established by the United Nations General Assembly to help children in post-war Europe, China and the Middle East; Funded entirely through voluntary contributions from governments, civil society, the private sector and concerned citizens, it rapidly expanded its reach and by 1955 was working for children in more than 90 countries.

Today, he said, UNICEF is the world’s largest children’s organization, working with partners in 190 countries and territories and through the efforts of 13,000 national and international staff to reach every child.

As said by him, UNICEF’s relentless engagement in the world’s toughest places has helped create remarkable progress for children in recent decades. The number of children dying before their fifth birthdays has been more than halved in the past 25 years. While hundreds of millions of children have been lifted out of poverty, just as out-of-school rates among primary-school-aged children have been reduced by over 40 per cent since 1990.

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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.

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No link to lower IQs in children of mothers who took epilepsy drugs

NaijaAgroNet:

Two newer epilepsy drugs may not harm the thinking skills or intelligence quotients (IQs) of school-aged children whose mothers took them while pregnant, but an older drug is linked to cognitive problems in children, especially if their mothers took high doses – according to new research from The University of Manchester, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Valproate, one of the most commonly prescribed antiepileptic medications, has been associated in the past with birth defects and developmental problems.

NaijaAgroNet, however, reports that two newer drugs, namely levetiracetam and topirimate have had little or no investigations into their developmental impact until this latest research, published in the August 31, 2016, issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

Lead researcher and author of the paper Dr Rebecca Bromley of The University of Manchester’s School of Biological Sciences, said expectant mothers had to know the possible impacts their drug regimes may have on unborn children.

“Over the past few years, doctors have been moving away from prescribing valproate to pregnant women, shifting them to the two newer anti-epileptic drugs. But, until now, there hasn’t been any definitive research to understand what implications for IQ and development these two drugs may have.

“Working with funding from Epilepsy Research UK, our team was able to undertake a rigorous set of tests on the children of 171 women who had taken one of the three drugs while pregnant. From the results, we have concluded that – at the moment – levetiracetam and topiramate have no discernable impact on childhood intellectual development.

“However promising a start our findings are, we do acknowledge larger studies need to be carried out regularly to ensure these drugs do not change the thinking abilities of children in the future.”

The 171 mothers were identified using the UK Epilepsy and Pregnancy Register; each had a child between five and nine years old. Of these 171 women, 42 had taken levetiracetam, 27 had taken topirimate and 47 had taken valproate while pregnant – an additional control group of women with similarly-aged children who had not taken any antiepileptic drug while pregnant was also included in the study.

Dr Bromley and her team performed tests on their children to measure IQ, verbal and non-verbal comprehension, and the speed at which they could process visual information.

Regardless of the level of dose of medication, the topirimate and levetiracetam-prescribed group showed no discernible difference in IQ or thinking skills compared to the control group.

However, the valproate group had an average IQ 11 points lower than the control, levetiracetam and topirimate cohort.

“Expectant mothers with epilepsy may need to continue their drug regime during pregnancy; this research may give them some reassurance that – provided they are prescribed topirimate and levetiracetam – they will a statistically good chance of normal, healthy development in their children,” concluded Dr Bromley.

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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. 

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Hungry children can’t learn says Applegate, petitions congress

NaijaAgroNet:

A resident of Spencer, Indiana in the United States, Ms Rebecca Applegate has petitioned the Congress against the plans to take food out of the mouths of hungry school children, insisting that hungry children cannot learn in any circumstance, reports NaijaAgroNet.

The petition on change.org and made available to NaijaAgroNet which has garnered over 3,330 supporters, Applegate wondered if anyone has been so hungry they could not concentrate on anything and then imagine being a 6-year-old trying to learn how to read with an empty stomach.

Applegate, who is a second-grade teacher, noted that in a rural community where most families struggle to make ends meet despite both parents working, families rely on the free or reduced cost meals provided to their children at school.

“Unfortunately, some in Congress are trying to pass a law that would cut off these meals for many of our most vulnerable children,” she decried.

According to her, the Improving Child Nutrition and Education Bill of 2016 currently in the United States Congress, is misleading as the bill will make it harder for the poorest schools, wondering if schools like hers would ever qualify for community eligibility.

Community eligibility, Ms Applegate said, is an option for schools when there are so many disadvantaged students, all students qualify for free lunch.

“This saves resource strapped school districts from having to individually track each eligible student in the lunch line and prevents low income students from going hungry,” she said, stressing that if this bill becomes law, it would jeopardize approximately 3.4 million students in the 7,000 schools that have already implemented community eligibility.

“My school would be one of them, and I can’t stand by and let my students go hungry,” she said, appealing for support against allowing the Congress to take food away from hungry children.

Often, she said, children come to class hungry and cannot wait to go to breakfast, hence, they are restless and even confess often they have had very little or nothing to eat the night before.

“I personally pay for peanut butter crackers and other snacks to pass out mid-morning to keep my students going. Without free meals, I am not sure what these children are going to do,” Ms Applegate said.

She further enjoined well-meaning individuals to join her in asking Congress to reject H.R. 5003, the supposed ‘Improving Child Nutrition and Education Act of 2016’ insisting that hungry children cannot learn.

“We should be feeding and empowering our youth, not leaving them hungry,” Applegate maintained.

One of Applegate supporters stated that “Even as an adult, can you read or learn in a hungry situation, the answer is NO, so why wish that for small ones. It’s the way we treat them now will determine how they will treat us when we get old and they are in the centre of authorities.”

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18% of Anambra children under 5 malnourished - NGO

NaijaAgroNet:

The Anambra State chapter of the Nigerian Civil Society Scale-up Nutrition, a Non-Government Organisation (NGO), has alleged that 18 per cent of children in the state under the age of five suffer from malnutrition-based stunted growth, reports NaijaAgroNet.

The Local Working Group Coordinator for the NGO, Dr. Moses Ohamaeme, told newsmen at the state capital, Awka at the weekend that a survey conducted in the South east region by the organisation showed that Anambra State is worst hit in child malnutrition.

NaijaAgroNet also reports that Ohamaeme pointed out that malnutrition is severe among children with low milk consumption as well as those whose mothers had limited knowledge of its impact, stressing that malnourished babies have a higher risk of dying at infancy and are more likely to face life-long cognitive challenges capable of leading to poor school performance and chronic health problems.

He equally said that malnutrition in children usually manifest in form of wasting which Ohamaeme described as low weight for height, stunting as low height for age and underweight as low weight for age.

Lamenting this situation in a state like Anambra, reputed for abundant human and material resources, Dr. Ohamaeme emphasized that malnutrition and its related diseases are still an issue in public health in Anambra State. The state also has the lowest median of Exclusive Breast Feeding (EBF) in the zone.

“Even though EBF in the first six months is proven to be effective in preventing children from malnutrition, the practice is still very low in Anambra State,” he said.

The Group Coordinator in Anambra State, further urged the state government to create nutritional budget lines in the state ministries of health, primary health care development agency, education, economic planning, and agriculture.

In addition, the NGO said, local governments and the state House of Assembly should as matter of urgency similarly make certain the inclusiveness of funding for maternal child and adolescent nutrition centre among others.

NaijaAgroNet recalls that on 14 November 2011, the Federal Republic of Nigeria joined the global Scale-Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement with a letter of commitment from then Minister of Health, Dr. Onyebuchi Chukwu.

Noteworthy is that then, Nigeria recognised the role of nutrition as a development issue and had committed to addressing malnutrition with the adoption of a National Health Strategic Development Plan which recognises nutrition as an important component.

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First Bank, NCF partner to protect environment

 NaijaAgroNet

First Bank Nigeria and the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF) have come together tocreate awareness on the need to preserve wildlife and biodiversity among school children in Nigeria, reports NaijaAgroNet.

To give added impetus topromoting environmental sustainability, NaijaAgroNet learnt, the bank flagged off the conservation initiative recently with the planting of 120 trees at the Lagos State Civil Service Model College, Igbogbo, Ikorodu, where it also formally set up a conservation club in the school.

The Head, Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability in First Bank, Mr. Ismail Omamegbe said it was part of the bank's long-term approach to sustainability and minimizing direct and indirect impacts on the environment. The conservation initiative, NaijaAgroNet gathered, lays emphasis on tree planting and students' conservation clubs which will serve as vehicles to drive environmental protection and conservation.

"This has made us focused on three priority areas which are minimize carbon footprint, carbon offsetting, conservation and preservation of wildlife and biodiversity," he said.
Mr. Omamegbe stated that First Bank's partnership with the NCF is strategic because NCF's leadership role in promoting environmental conservation and sustainable development in Nigeria tallies with the bank's desire to see the environment sustained because it is a socially responsible entity, NaijaAgroNet reports.

Dr. Joseph Onoja, NCF's Director, Technical Programmes, had earlier stated that NCF  “is pleased that Lagos State Civil Service Model College, Igbogbo, Ikorodu will be the pacesetter for the conservation clubs. Today we are going to plant 120 trees in commemoration of First Bank's 120 years in existence”.

Cyriacus Nnaji/GEE
 
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