“Because, in a country that is in deep trouble – grappling with humanitarian disasters, climate-related disasters and serious human rights violations – too many people have forgotten that Afghanistan is the site of a human rights crisis. children,” he said, warning that the situation was getting worse.
Young life at risk
This year, About 2.3 million Afghan boys and girls may face acute malnutrition. Of these, 875,000 will require treatment for severe acute malnutrition, a life-threatening condition.
Furthermore, some 840,000 pregnant women and nursing mothers may experience acute malnutrition, jeopardizing their ability to give their babies the best start in life.
Mr. Equiza added that although the fighting had largely stopped, decades of conflict meant that children’s rights were violated “in the most appalling ways” every day.
dangerous escalation
He said Afghanistan was one of the most “arms-contaminated countries” in the world and most of the casualties were children.
He cites preliminary data showing that 134 children were killed or injured by explosive devices from January to March this year.
“This is the reality of the escalating danger that Afghan children face as they explore areas that were previously inaccessible due to war,” he said.
“Many of those killed and disabled were children collecting scraps to sell. Because that’s what poverty does. It forces you to send your children to work – not because you want to, but because you have to.
Stuck in child labor
Meanwhile, about 1.6 million Afghan children – some as young as six – are trapped in child labor, working in dangerous conditions just to help their parents get food on the table.
“And where education was once a symbol of hope, children’s right to education is being attacked”, added Mr. Equiza.
“Girls across Afghanistan have been denied the right to education for more than three years now – first because COVID-19 and then, as of September 2021, because of the ban on middle school. I don’t need to tell you about the impact of these absences on their mental health.”
Stay and adapt
He underlined UNICEFcommitted to stay and give birth to women and children in Afghanistan, where it has been for nearly 75 years.
“We are adapting to a rapidly changing reality, looking for ways to reach the children who need us most, while ensuring that Afghan women working for UNICEF can continue their invaluable contribution to our work for children,” he said.
With the need growing, he called for greater support from the international community, noting that UNICEF’s Call to Action for Children is only 22% funded.
