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UN agency seeks funds to help children and women in Africa

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is seeking USD 856 million to assist children and women victims of conflicts in Chad, Kenya and floods in Mozambique, reports CISA News.

Launching its Humanitarian Action Report 2008 in Geneva on Tuesday, the agency said the funds would be used to provide urgent assistance in health, education and nutrition.

In Kenya, some 150,000 children are among the 300,000 people who were forced from their homes, while in Chad, an estimated 30,000 of the 52,000 who have been driven from the country are vulnerable and urgently need help.

“In both these conflicts, and in the 37 other crises described in this report, children and women continue to bear the brunt of conflict and displacement,” UNICEF Deputy Executive Director Hilde Johnson told a press briefing in Geneva.

Funding is also being sought for humanitarian activities in Sudan, especially the strife-torn Darfur region, home to 2.1 million internally displaced persons (IDPs). UNICEF-supported programmes in Sudan, totalling over USD 150 million, aim to boost health, nutrition and education, increase access to safe water and sanitation, and promote child protection and mine action.

In West Africa, nearly 1 million people are currently displaced by conflict and young children face the risk of under-nutrition. In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), more than half of the deaths of young children are attributed to malnutrition. UNICEF is requesting USD 106 million to help Congolese children.

“We must make sure children and women are protected as much as possible from these atrocities, and that those responsible for these crimes are eventually brought to justice,” Ms. Johnson stressed.

The agency said it hopes donors and other partners will help increase the efficiency of disaster preparedness and response.

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[02/19/2008]

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