Conflict and emergencies
UNICEF humanitarian action report 2009
UNICEF humanitarian action report 2009: challenges to be faced
Authors:
Publisher:
United Nations [UN] Children's Fund , 2009
This 2009 UNICEF Humanitarian Action Report is an appeal for children and women affected by emergencies in 36 countries in the six UNICEF regions.
Emergencies, the report explains, take the form of disasters, socio-political conflict, epidemics, and systematic human rights violations which put at risk the rights and well-being of women and children. It states that child protection issues gain additional importance in such an environment as child labour is likely to increase, child marriage becomes more common and school attendance is negatively impacted.
The report notes that existing vulnerabilities of protracted conflicts, political crises and disasters are exacerbated by high food prices and that UNICEF’s response is to help governments ensure nutritional security, especially for children and pregnant and lactating women. Nutritional security implies access to adequate food, appropriate micronutrients, safe water, sanitation and hygiene, quality health-care services, and improved household and community practices in childcare, food hygiene and preparation.
The UNICEF report states that many of children’s main killers (malaria, diarrhoea and under nutrition) are highly sensitive to climatic conditions. UNICEF is currently formulating a strategy to meet the challenges of climate change and fully recognizes the importance of disaster risk reduction measures to climate change adaptation. It developed disaster risk reduction initiatives in 2008 and will seek to engage in climate change adaptation, risk mitigation, early warning, preparedness and emergency response in order to reduce the impact of disasters.
The report concludes that high food prices, climate change, rising frequency and intensity of disasters, population growth, steadily increasing urbanization and the spiralling costs of fuel and energy will likely continue to be of concern in 2009.
