Unicef Bangladesh yesterday raised concern over the growing number of children in the country being pushed into child labour, as schools are closed since March last year and poverty levels are rising amid the pandemic. "Families are struggling to cope and using every available means to survive. We need to prioritise the needs of children and address the wider social issues
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Coronavirus Pandemic: 168m kids missed school for a year
Says Unicef; US brings forward vaccine goal Agencies Agencies
Schools for more than 168 million children globally have been completely closed for almost an entire year due to Covid-19 lockdowns, according to new data released by Unicef yesterday.
Furthermore, around 214 million children globally – or 1 in 7 – have missed more than three-quarters of their in-person learning.
The analysis on school closures report notes that 14 countries worldwide have remained largely closed since March 2020 to February 2021.
Two-thirds of those countries are in Latin America and the Caribbean, affecting nearly 98 million schoolchildren. Of the 14 countries, Panama has kept schools closed for the most days, followed by El Salvador, Bangladesh, and Bolivia.
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Video report by ITV News Senior International Correspondent John Irvine
Almost 2.5 million children under the age of five in Yemen are set to suffer from acute malnutrition in 2021, according to a report.
The report by Food and Agriculture Organization, Unicef, and the World Food Programme (WFP) and partners, also estimates that 400,000 could have severe acute malnutrition, which is potentially fatal.
Additionally, the report notes around 1.2 million pregnant or breastfeeding women in Yemen are projected to be acutely malnourished this year, which has a major knock-on effect for their children. Credit: Mercy Corps
A variety of factors have contributed to the alarming situation in Yemen in recent times, most notably war, economic decline, the Covid-19 pandemic and humanitarian organisations suffering a funding shortfall.
Over 10 million children will suffer from acute malnutrition in 2021: Unicef
A seven-month-old child, in Yemen, has their upper arm measured to check for malnutrition. Ongoing conflict has triggered widespread food insecurity across the country, leaving thousands of children severely and acutely malnourished. Photo: Unicef Star Online Report Star Online Report
More than 10 million children in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, northeast Nigeria, the Central Sahel, South Sudan and Yemen will suffer from acute malnutrition in 2021, the United Nations Children s Fund (Unicef) has said.
In a statement on Wednesday, Unicef also warned that the numbers could rise further without urgent action.