COVID-19: UNICEF says pandemic rolling back progress made for children in last 75 years

A recent report released by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) on Thursday revealed that the COVID-19 outbreak has been reversing the progress on important childhood issues including poverty, health, and access to education, further describing it as the largest worldwide disaster for children since the organisation was created 75 years ago. As per the report, the COVID-19 pandemic has forced an additional 100 million children into poverty, a rise of 10% since 2019. Since the outbreak was proclaimed in mid-March of last year, roughly two youngsters have died every second. 

Before the UNICEF's significant anniversary on December 11, the agency has released the report under the name, “Preventing a lost decade: Urgent action to reverse the devastating impact of COVID-19 on children and young people.” The UNICEF Executive Director, Henrietta Fore said, “The COVID-19 pandemic has been the biggest threat to progress for children in our 75-year history. In a year in which we should be looking forward, we are going backward,” as per the UN report.  

UNICEF report reveals the reverse of child progress during the COVID-19 outbreak 

The UNICEF chief went on to say that the number of children who are starving, out of school, mistreated or poor is far more than those kids who have access to healthcare, immunisations or enough food. As per the UN report, over 60 million children are currently living in financially impoverished families, with more than 23 million missing out on critical vaccinations, which is considered to be the largest figure in over a decade. 

Meanwhile, before the COVID-19 pandemic, about one billion children in the globe were deprived of at least one basic need, like education, healthcare, shelter, nourishment, sanitation, as well as freshwater. The number is rising due to unequal development. Furthermore, lockdowns kept over 1.6 billion children out of school. During the peak of the COVID outbreak, more than a quarter of all teenagers between the ages of 10 and 19 suffer from mental illness. According to UNICEF, coronavirus transmission has delayed or discontinued key mental health services in 93% of nations by October 2020. 

Due to the pandemic, the number of child labourers has climbed to 160 million, a rise of over 8.5 million from the previous four years. The UNICEF further said 426 million children, or nearly one in every five, live in war zones that are intensifying, with women and girls being the most vulnerable to conflict-related sexual violence. Furthermore, approximately half of the world's children or one billion live in nations that are particularly vulnerable to climate changes' effects. 

In addition to this, UNICEF estimates that returning to pre-pandemic conditions will require up to eight years. The agency stated that action is needed to stop the outbreak and reverse the decline in child education and nutrition, particularly leveraging its position in the COVID vaccine for kids, as per the UN report. 

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