‘Don’t Let Children be the Hidden Victims of COVID-19 Pandemic’

* Photo: UNICEF

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In a written statement released yesterday (April 9), UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore has indicated that children and young people are among the most severely impacted victims of the COVID-19 pandemic.

She has also announced that UNICEF is launching a global "agenda for action" to protect the most vulnerable children from harm in this process.

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"Unless we act now to address the pandemic's impacts on children, the echoes of COVID-19 will permanently damage our shared future," Fore has stressed and shared the following information from around the world:

"According to our analysis, 99 percent of children and young people under 18 worldwide (2.34 billion) live in one of the 186 countries with some form of movement restrictions in place due to COVID-19.

"Sixty percent of all children live in one of 82 countries with a full (7 percent) or partial (53 percent) lockdown - accounting for 1.4 billion young lives."

'Agenda for action to protect the most vulnerable'

Sharing details about the UNICEF agenda for action within this context, Fore has stated that the agenda has the following six pillars:

"1) Keep children healthy and safe; 2) Reach vulnerable children with water, sanitation and hygiene; 3) Keep children learning; 4) Support families to cover their needs and care for their children; 5) Protect children from violence, exploitation and abuse; and 6) Protect refugee and migrant children, and those affected by conflict."

Reiterating that "without urgent action, this health crisis risks becoming a child rights crisis," Fore has briefly stated the following:

'Disruptions threatening new outbreaks'

"In health, COVID-19 has the potential to overwhelm fragile health systems in low- and middle-income countries and undermine many of the gains made in child survival, health, nutrition and development over the last several decades. But too many national healthcare systems were already struggling. Prior to the COVID-19 crisis, 32 percent of children worldwide with pneumonia symptoms were not being taken to a health provider.

"What will happen when COVID-19 hits in full force? We're already seeing disruptions in immunization services, threatening outbreaks of diseases for which there already exists a vaccine, such as polio, measles and cholera.

'Let's ensure access to a healthy environment'

"Likewise, protecting ourselves and others through proper handwashing and hygiene practices has never been more important. But for many children, basic water, sanitation and hygiene facilities remain out of reach.

"Let us ensure that every household, school, and health care facility has the means to a hygienic and healthy environment.

'Commitments to education never been so urgent'

"In education, an entire generation of children have seen their education interrupted. Nationwide school closures have disrupted the education of more than 1.57 billion students – 91 per cent – worldwide.

"An entire generation of students could suffer damage to their learning and potential. Redoubling our commitments to education, and our investments in it, has never been more urgent.

Socio-economic impacts to be felt by children

"The socio-economic impact of COVID-19 will be felt hardest by the world's most vulnerable children. Many already live in poverty, and consequences of COVID-19 response measures risk plunging them further into hardship.

"As millions of parents struggle to maintain their livelihoods and income, governments must scale up social protection measures - providing social safety nets and cash transfers, protecting jobs, working with employers to support working parents, and prioritizing policies that connect families to life-saving health care, nutrition and education.

'Don't forget children already in humanitarian crises'

'Children already living through humanitarian crises must also not be forgotten during the COVID-19 response.

"2020 was already set to be a year with more people than ever before in need of humanitarian assistance, and the vulnerabilities of children in crisis-affected countries will persist and likely be further compounded by the consequences of this pandemic, exposing them to a double jeopardy.

"It is up to the global community to come together in support of the most vulnerable children – those torn from their families and homes – to uphold their rights and protect them from the spread of the virus."

(EMK/SD)