Press releases
Urgent action needed to safeguard futures of 600 million South Asian children threatened by Coronavirus.
23 June 2020 – The Coronavirus pandemic is unravelling decades of health, education and other advances for children across South Asia.
UNICEF airlifts COVID-19 testing kits to Yemen to boost response as cases soar
18 June 2020— A first batch of 10,000 COVID-19 tests arrived in Sana’a on a UNICEF-chartered plane today, to increase the COVID-19 testing capacity amid the rapid increase of cases in Yemen.
Countries failing to prevent violence against children, agencies warn
18th June 2020 - Half of the world’s children, or approximately 1 billion children each year are affected by physical, sexual or psychological violence, suffering injuries, disabilities and death, because countries have failed to follow established strategies to protect them.
Universal child benefits critical in reducing poverty, new ODI and UNICEF report finds
Universal child benefits are critical in the fight against child poverty, yet nearly 9 in 10 countries worldwide do not provide universal child or family benefit schemes, according to a new report published today by the Overseas Development Institute and UNICEF.
WORLD FIRST: Pelé, Maradona, and Ronaldinho form dream strike-force in Soccer Aid World XI FC FIFA 20 team with Robbie Williams set to help support Unicef coronavirus response
This is the first time ever that Maradona, Pelé and Ronaldinho will be playable from the start, in the same side, without the need for transfers.
An additional 51,000 children under the age of five might die in the Middle East and North Africa by end of 2020 due to COVID-19’s disruption in primary health care
15 June 2020 – Statement from Ted Chaiban, UNICEF Regional Director in the Middle East and North Africa and Dr. Ahmed Al-Mandhari, WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean Region.
Geneva Palais briefing note on the humanitarian situation of children in Yemen
12 June 2020 – “In Yemen, humanitarian needs have never been more acute, or funding more constrained. “As of today, UNICEF’s US$479 million appeal to sustain essential basic services for children this year is just 38 per cent funded."
Reaction statement to DfE weekly report on attendance in education and early years settings during the coronavirus outbreak. Joanna Rea, Director of Advocacy at Unicef UK says:
"It is also crucial that the Government continues to support children’s home education, particularly in relation to digital connectivity, by redoubling efforts to ensure all children are learning while at home. We urge the Government to continue to act to protect children from the impact of the pandemic and ensure it does not cast a long shadow on their futures"
Unequal access to remote schooling amid Coronavirus threatens to deepen global learning crisis
5 June 2020 – As nearly 1.2 billion schoolchildren remain affected by school closures and as they grapple with the realities of remote learning in the midst of the Coronavirus pandemic, UNICEF warns inherent inequalities in access to tools and technology threaten to deepen the global learning crisis.
Ebola resurfaces in Équateur Province, north-western Democratic Republic of the Congo
1 June 2020 – The Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has confirmed the death of five people – including one 15-year-old girl - due to Ebola in Mbandaka.
Coronavirus: Number of children living in household poverty to soar by up to 86 million by end of year
28 May 2020 – The economic fallout of the Coronavirus pandemic could push up to 86 million more children into household poverty by the end of 2020, an increase of 15 per cent, according to a new analysis released today by Save the Children and UNICEF.
Food crisis likely to worsen in the Middle East and North Africa as Coronavirus continues
27 MAY 2020 - “Governments and partners across the Middle East and North Africa Region (MENA) are working around the clock to protect communities from the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19).
At least 80 million children under one at risk of diseases such as diphtheria, measles and polio as Coronavirus disrupts routine vaccination efforts, warn Gavi, WHO and UNICEF
22 May 2020 – Coronavirus is disrupting life-saving immunization services around the world, putting millions of children – in rich and poor countries alike – at risk of diseases like diphtheria, measles and polio.
UNICEF reaches nearly 150 million people with information on coronavirus across the Middle East and North Africa
21 May 2020 – Nearly 150 million people, a third of the region’s population, were reached with information to help them combat coronavirus in the Middle East and North Africa in the past eight weeks.