Press releases

NEW YORK/GENEVA/KYIV, 24 March 2022 – One month of war in Ukraine has led to the displacement of 4.3 million children – more than half of the country’s estimated 7.5 million child population. This includes more than 1.8 million children who have crossed into neighbouring countries as refugees and 2.5 million who are now internally displaced inside Ukraine.

UNICEF Executive Director, Catherine Russel's statement following a reported attack against maternity hospital in Mariupol, Ukraine

NEW YORK, 28 February 2022 – “Today’s landmark Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report removes whatever shred of doubt remained: The climate crisis is not a future threat. It is here, it is accelerating, and it will continue to affect the world in increasingly devastating ways.

GENEVA, February 9, 2022 - World leaders will today launch a call to end the pandemic as a global emergency in 2022 by funding the Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator, a partnership of leading agencies that is providing low and middle-income countries with tests, treatments, vaccines, and personal protective equipment.

6 February 2022 - UNICEF meets child surivors of the attack on northeast Syria prison and calls for immediate release of children

GENEVA/NEW YORK, 3 February 2022 – UNICEF revises its emergency fundraising appeal for children affected by Typhoon Rai (locally named Odette) from an initial US$11.5 million to US$39 million. More than a month after the Super Typhoon hit the Philippines, assessments reveal that the needs of affected families are greater than initial estimates. Of the sixteen million affected people, an estimated 2.4 million people, including 912,00 children, need assistance. UNICEF’s appeal targets 492,000 people and 293,000 children, focusing on the hardest-to-reach and impoverished families.

02 February 2022, "The UK Government's announcement of new funding of £1.5 billion over the next 8 years to global nutrition programmes will provide a much-needed life-line for millions of children.

24 January 2022 – On International Day of Education, IHS Towers and UNICEF announced a three-year international partnership to support the Giga initiative’s objective to map internet connectivity of all schools worldwide. Giga is a joint initiative of UNICEF’s Office of Innovation and ITU’s Telecommunications Development Bureau.

24 January 2022 – More than 635 million students remain affected by full or partial school closures. On the International Day of Education and as the COVID-19 pandemic nears its two-year mark, UNICEF shares the latest available data on the impact of the pandemic on children’s learning.

23 January 2022 - A statement attributable to Bo Viktor Nylund, UNICEF Syria Representative as UNICEF calls for the release of children in detention, taking them through restorative justice and the return of foreign children in the northeast of Syria to their home countries.

22 January 2022 - Statement attributable to Ted Chaiban, UNICEF Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, as the number of children reported killed doubles in one month in Yemen

AMMAN, 19 January 2022 – “Over 120 grave violations against children have been verified across Sudan since the military coup on 25 October last year.

NEW YORK/COPENHAGEN, 18 January 2022 – UNICEF has signed several long term agreements (LTA) with suppliers for the procurement of the new antiviral medicine Molnupiravir.

SUVA, FIJI (17 January 2022) - UNICEF Pacific is ready to work together with the Government of Tonga and its partners to ensure urgent life-saving support is provided to families and children in the aftermath of the volcanic eruption and tsunami.

16th January 2022 “Overnight, a shipment of COVID-19 vaccines to Rwanda included the billionth dose supplied via COVAX. This is a remarkable milestone in the largest vaccine procurement and supply operation in history. Yet, with so many people still waiting to be offered a single dose, more needs to be done urgently.