Humanitarian action and emergencies

As dawn breaks over Darfur, my return after two decades feels heavy. Many millions are suffering once again. Twenty years ago, I was part of the humanitarian effort to make a difference. That was in the early 2000s, when celebrities and world-famous journalists would make the trek in a well-intentioned effort to focus attention on the atrocities…

In conflicts around the world, civilians continue to endure the devastating consequences of the use of explosive weapons. Every year, thousands of children are killed, seriously injured or have their lives severely altered – during armed conflict and long after hostilities have ended. As armed conflicts have increasingly been fought in cities,…, Why children are particularly vulnerable to explosive weapons, Child survivors of explosive weapons in populated areas (EWIPA) endure devastating physical injuries. Some lose their sight, hearing or limbs, while others lose the ability to speak. Children who have been injured, especially those left with disabilities, have different physical rehabilitation needs to adults and, in situations where resources are…, How UNICEF is responding, UNICEF and partners provide lifesaving aid during and after conflict erupts and work to strengthen systems to protect children and support their survival, health and development. This includes interventions to ensure access to food, shelter, social support and health care. UNICEF rehabilitates and upgrades destroyed water and sanitation systems,…, Political Declaration on the use of Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas, The Political Declaration on the use of Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas , adopted in Dublin in November 2022, is a crucial opportunity to better protect children, their families and communities from armed conflict. The declaration sends a strong signal worldwide that harming civilians and damaging cities is not a reality we should accept by…, What UNICEF is calling for, All parties to conflict and those with influence over them, to protect and ensure respect for children’s rights including by ending the use of explosive weapons in populated areas. All member states to sign the EWIPA Declaration and to the member states that are already signatories, to identify and adopt military measures, policies, and practices…

I wasn’t ready for the devastation I saw in the Gaza Strip when I was there a few months ago. I wrote then that in my 20 years with UNICEF I’d never seen anything quite like it, as panicked families fled one bombardment after another. The desperation of families constantly on the move – families who already had nothing – was palpable. Somehow,…

Worldwide, one in every 10 children has a disability – and the proportion is even higher in populations affected by armed conflict or disasters. Children and adults with disabilities are among the most marginalized people in any community affected by crisis. Exacerbating this situation, they often are excluded from humanitarian assistance. But…

At the start of 2024, we stand at a critical juncture: Geopolitical tensions are escalating, economic integration is unravelling, and multilateral cooperation is faltering. This global fragmentation threatens to undermine decades of progress made for children worldwide. The choices we make today – whether to continue on this path or whether we…

Afghanistan has mostly disappeared from the global news cycle, but the hardship faced by its people, especially children, has worsened over the last two years.   I wanted to see the situation for myself, and how our colleagues have adjusted their efforts under the new circumstances. For a week I travelled the breadth of Afghanistan, from Herat in…, Herat: After the earthquakes , Inside the tent, it’s so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Fifteen adolescent girls watch me expectantly. It’s been a while since I’ve spoken Farsi – a language readily understood by the Dari speakers of Western Afghanistan. I pause, then try again. This time they understand me, and their laughter lights up the place.  The tent we sit in is a…, Torkham border: Families returning from Pakistan , Baby Kolsum pulls a face when I drop the polio vaccine in his mouth. The fight against polio was where my UNICEF career began, and my heart was set on successfully vaccinating one of the kids returning from Pakistan at the Torkham border crossing today.   I ask for another try. A second baby boy, Shabir, his tiny body swaddled in warm blankets, is…, Daikundi: Supporting communities on health, nutrition and education , Daikundi Province is perched among the jagged peaks of Afghanistan’s central highlands. Buffeted by crosswinds, the little Kodiak plane comes in to land on a flat piece of land the length of two football pitches.   We drive deeper into the mountains, past mud-bricked villages, women shouldering bundles of firewood, and boys herding shaggy goats.…

Nothing could prepare me for my recently concluded mission into the Gaza Strip, where children face catastrophic conditions. In my twenty years with UNICEF, traveling from one humanitarian crisis to the next – from famines to floods and war zones to refugee camps – I’ve simply never seen such devastation and despair as is happening in Gaza. The…

Country-level humanitarian action is supported by a global architecture made up of UNICEF’s seven regional offices and headquarters divisions. These offices provide the core infrastructure to support field preparedness and response to save lives, protect rights, reduce vulnerabilities to disasters and conflicts, support global and country…, 24/7 support, The UNICEF Office of Emergency Programmes coordinates the organization’s global support for humanitarian action, including through a security team and the 24/7 Operations Centre (OPSCEN), OPSCEN monitors humanitarian crises, political events and security-related incidents around the world with a view to ensuring the safety of staff and providing…, 2024 requirements, In 2024, this support will cost US$112 million. UNICEF will cover 34 per cent of this cost through its core resources and will require US$73.7 million in flexible and multi-year funding to cover the remaining needs. UNICEF Global Support includes four major components: Global support page from the 2024 Overview document View pages in more detail…

I pen these words following a recent visit to Artibonite, in northern Haiti, a visit that has left an indelible mark. I heard firsthand how children and families have been thrust into the abyss of despair. How they are grappling with fear, uncertainty, and unimaginable hardships. Violence, poverty, school closures, and a resurgence of cholera and…

Situation reports are the main reporting tool to monitor UNICEF’s humanitarian response. They provide an update on the situation and needs of children in a country or region, as well as information on UNICEF’s response and funding requirements., 2024, 31 March 2024 14 February 2024 January 2024, 2023, October-December 2023 31 December 2023 14 December 2023 Armenia Humanitarian Situation Report No. 8: 17-30 November 2023 30 November 2023 16 November 2023 09 November 2023 01 November 2023 24 October 2023 17 October 2023 09 October 2023 02 October 2023 Read more about Humanitarian Action for Children  here .

As soon as you meet 17-year-old Francis*, you know his childhood hasn’t been one that anyone deserves. He struggles to make eye contact while we’re talking, and his expression remains mostly blank. When he says he was only six when it all started, I immediately think of my own six-year-old son. It makes it even harder to hear what Francis has been…

A girl held by her mother is getting checked for malnutrition. Aynet Farhat, 16 months old, with her mother and a health worker at the Red Crescent Center in Hajjah governorate, Yemen. Thanks to the support from OCHA, 7,500 cartons of ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) were provided along with routine medication, benefiting 7,500 children under…