UNICEF launches appeal to meet unprecedented humanitarian needs
Appeal aims to reach more than 110 million children with humanitarian assistance across 155 countries and territories.
Today, there are more children in need of humanitarian assistance than at any other time since the Second World War. Across the globe, children are facing a historic confluence of crises – from conflict and displacement to infectious disease outbreaks and soaring rates of malnutrition.
More than 400 million children live in areas under conflict; an estimated 1 billion children – nearly half the world’s children – live in countries at extreme vulnerability to the impacts of climate change; at least 36.5 million children have been displaced from their homes; and 8 million children under age 5 across 15 crisis-hit countries are at risk of death from severe wasting.
But the situation is far from hopeless. We know how to reach children at greatest risk and in greatest need. Decisive and timely humanitarian action can save children’s lives, while also sowing the seeds of future development.
Through the Humanitarian Action for Children appeal 2023, UNICEF is appealing for US$10.3 billion to reach more than 110 million children with humanitarian assistance.
In an increasingly volatile world with more children in need than ever before, it is critical that UNICEF and partners have the right support. This means timely and flexible funding which enables us to respond quickly to crises and anticipate future risks. Flexible funding also helps us to ensure that our humanitarian response is based on need and that we can allocate resources equitably across crises. 👉🏾 Read about how flexible funding saves lives
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Humanitarian action for children: Goals for 2023
In 2023, UNICEF and its partners will continue to provide a principled, timely, predictable and efficient humanitarian response in line with international norms and standards. UNICEF is also working on strengthening the resilience of communities and health infrastructure to withstand climate hazards, with the aim of better linking its humanitarian response to longer-term community resilience and climate adaptation.
Gender equality and inclusive programming: In 2023, UNICEF will continue to prioritize gender equity in humanitarian action – from preparedness to response and recovery.
Climate in humanitarian action: While much of the global focus is on mitigating climate change risk, investment in adaptation measures is required immediately to build resilience in a drastically – and rapidly – changing environment. UNICEF’s interventions focus on: (1) scaling up climate change adaptation models in global operations; (2) advocating and engaging in policy development; and (3) prioritizing climate-adaptive preparedness efforts as key elements to ensure timely, effective and cost-efficient actions to save lives and build resilience. 👉 Read more about the climate shock threat
Global food and nutrition crises: UNICEF’s goal is to protect and promote diets, services and practices that prevent, detect and treat child wasting. UNICEF aims to ensure that no child dies from wasting. UNICEF will accelerate progress on two interrelated fronts simultaneously: (1) reduce the number of children suffering from the more severe forms of wasting; (2) increase the number of children with severe forms of wasting who access treatment. 👉🏼 Learn more about severe wasting
Public health emergencies: The annual number of outbreaks reported to the World Health Organization has increased more than threefold since 1980. UNICEF is committed to addressing public health emergencies not only through emergency coordination and leadership, responding to the health threat, but also by working to ensure the continuity of essential services.
Response in 2022
From Afghanistan to Somalia, from Ukraine to Yemen – UNICEF has been on the ground in countries around the world, providing children with life-saving services during humanitarian emergencies. We are working to strengthen the systems that children rely on – like health care, protection, water and sanitation – and to make those systems more resilient to climate shocks and other crises. And UNICEF is expanding capacity to anticipate crises so that we are prepared to meet children’s needs as emergencies unfold. 👉🏽 Read more about UNICEF’s work in emergencies
2022 results:
* Provisional figures as of June 2022
The climate shock threat
Blistering heat waves. A global hunger crisis. Deadly conflicts. Displacement. These crises are set to intensify as climate change impacts the frequency, intensity, and duration of emergencies, deepening inequities across the globe, and driving new waves of conflict, displacement, and disease.
But while the needs of children and families have never been greater, the humanitarian system is struggling to respond to the sheer scale of these crises. From historic floods in Pakistan, to drought across large swathes of Africa – particularly the Horn of Africa – to record-breaking temperatures and a nutrition crisis, climate shocks are driving increased humanitarian needs. 👉🏿 Read more about the climate crisis
UNICEF in action
In conflict and disaster, children suffer first and suffer most. From protracted conflicts to disease outbreaks to natural disasters, children across the globe face an uncertain future. Read about how UNICEF and partners are working to find lasting, cost-effective responses and solutions: