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In the drought-prone villages in many parts of the country, seasonal migration forces families into impossible choices. When parents leave for months to work in sugarcane fields, brick kilns or construction sites, they often take their children along. But those who stay behind are left in the care of grandparents or older siblings, often facing emotional strain and the burden of household responsibilities. For both groups, the consequences are stark: disrupted education, limited access to healthcare, and exposure to child labour and early marriage. The UNICEF, in collaboration with district authorities and NGOs, is working to address this crisis through its 'Kinship and Community-Based Care Programme' in places like drought-prone Jalna in Maharashtra. The initiative, which aims to keep children in their villages under the care of relatives or community members, is part of a broader shift in India's child protection system'?s move away from institutional care toward family-based ..
At least 242 million children in 85 countries had their schooling interrupted last year because of heatwaves, cyclones, flooding and other extreme weather, the United Nations Children's Fund said in a new report Friday. UNICEF said it amounted to one in seven school-going children across the world being kept out of class at some point in 2024 because of climate hazards. The report also outlined how some countries saw hundreds of their schools destroyed by weather, with low-income nations in Asia and sub-Saharan Africa hit especially hard. But other regions weren't spared the extreme weather, as torrential rains and floods in Italy near the end of the year disrupted school for more than 900,000 children. Thousands had their classes halted after catastrophic flooding in Spain. While southern Europe dealt with deadly floods and Asia and Africa had flooding and cyclones, heatwaves were the predominant climate hazard shuttering schools last year, UNICEF said, as the earth recorded its .
The 12-year-old Palestinian boy was lying in a hospital bed in central Gaza, wracked with leukemia, malnourished and whimpering in pain despite the morphine doctors were giving him, when Rosalia Bollen, a UNICEF official, said she saw him in late October. Islam al-Rayahen's family had asked Israeli authorities six times over the past months for permission to evacuate him from Gaza for a desperately needed stem cell transplant, Bollen said. Six times, the request was refused for unexplained security reasons, she said. Islam died three days after she saw him, Bollen said. Thousands of patients in Gaza are waiting for Israeli permission for urgently needed medical evacuation from Gaza for treatment of war wounds or chronic diseases they can't get after the destruction of much of the territory's health care system by Israel's 15-month military campaign. Among them are at least 2,500 children who UNICEF says must be transported immediately. They cannot afford to wait. These children wi
The United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) India unit has praised Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav's initiatives for promoting menstrual health among adolescents in the state. A post on the UNICEF India's X account on Saturday night said Rs 57.18 crore has been transferred into the accounts of 19 lakh school-going girls in Madhya Pradesh as part of a cash transfer scheme. "We appreciate Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, Dr Mohan Yadav's initiative to promote menstrual health among adolescents," it said. "UNICEF India is working with the Government of India and stakeholders to promote school hygiene and menstrual health awareness," it added. According to officials, Yadav transferred a collective sum of Rs 57.18 crore to the accounts of 19 lakh girl students under the 'Samagra Shiksha' programme for sanitation and hygiene during an event organised in state capital Bhopal on August 11. Under the sanitation and hygiene scheme, funds have been transfer
Children in West and Central Africa are increasingly exposed to extreme heat, which further endangers their health, according to a new report by UNICEF. The frequency of heatwaves in the region has more than quadrupled since the 1960s, according to the report published on Wednesday. West Africa experienced an unprecedented heat wave earlier this year that led to a surge in deaths. One hospital in Mali reported 102 deaths in the first four days of April, compared to 130 deaths in the entire month of April last year. It's unknown how many of the fatalities were due to the extreme weather as such data cannot be made public under the regulations imposed by the country's military rulers. The extreme heat is creating health concerns for children and pregnant women as it is linked to higher chances of stillbirths, low birth weight and preterm births, according to the report. Exposure to high levels of heat also leaves children more vulnerable to developing chronic diseases and contracting
The Union Health Ministry on Thursday said media reports stating that India has a high number of 'zero dose children', who did not receive any vaccine, in comparison to other countries based on UNICEF report depicts an incomplete picture of the country's immunization data. The ministry said they do not factor in the population base and immunization coverage of the countries compared. The accurate and complete narrative of the immunization efforts of the government can be gauged through comprehensive understanding of the relative data and programmatic interventions, the ministry added. The percentage coverage for all antigens in India is higher than the global average. In India, for most of the antigens, the coverage is more than 90 per cent, which is at par with other high-income countries such as New Zealand (DTP-1 93 per cent), Germany and Finland (DPT-3 91 per cent), Sweden (MCV-1 93 per cent), Luxembourg (MCV-2 90 per cent), Ireland (PCV-3 83 per cent), United Kingdom of Great
India's population, which is many times more than several nations, has not been taken into account while comparing children's vaccination data with 19 other countries in the latest WHO and UNICEF estimates of national immunisation coverage (WUENIC), official sources have said. They asserted that India is steadfast in its commitment to reduce the number of zero-dose children. "Even though India has the second highest (number of) zero-dose children in the world, it accounts for 0.11 per cent of the country's total population," Union health ministry sources said on Tuesday. The sources were reacting to the WUENIC data released on Monday which stated that India had the second highest number of children, nearly 16 lakh, who did not receive any vaccine in 2023, just after Nigeria with 21 lakh zero-dose children. "The comparison is flawed as the base population has not been taken into consideration," a source said. The WUENIC data showed that India's rank improved from 2021 when the coun
Haiti's newly selected prime minister, Garry Conille, was hospitalised late Saturday in the capital of Port-au-Prince just days after arriving in the country, an official told The Associated Press. It wasn't immediately known why Conille was hospitalised. Louis Grald Gilles, a member of the transitional presidential council that recently chose Conille as leader of the troubled Caribbean country, said he was en route to the hospital and did not have further information. A spokesman for Conille did not immediately return a message for comment. AP journalists observed high-ranking officials entering the hospital, including Frantz Elb, director of Haiti's National Police. Also present was Bruno Maes, UNICEF's representative in Haiti. They both declined comment. A handful of curious onlookers gathered outside the hospital as authorities blocked the street with tinted-glass SUVs. Conille was chosen as prime minister May 28 after a convoluted selection process. He faces an arduous task
UNICEF India on Saturday announced Bollywood star Kareena Kapoor Khan as its new National Ambassador. The "Crew" star, who has been associated with UNICEF India since 2014, will support the not-for-profit organisation in furthering every child's right to early childhood development, health, education and gender equality, a press release said. Kareena had earlier served as a Celebrity Advocate for UNICEF India. There are few things as important as the rights of children, the future generation of this world. I am honoured to continue my association with UNICEF now as India's National Ambassador," the 43-year-old actor said in a statement. "I will strive to use my voice and influence for vulnerable children and their rights, especially around early childhood, education and gender equality. For every child deserves a childhood, a fair chance, a future," she added. Besides Kareena, UNICEF India has also appointed its first-ever Youth Advocates, who are peer leaders and champions on iss