ISLAMABAD
\nAlmost one billion children are exposed to high or extremely high water stress, stated the United Nations Children\u2019s Fund (Unicef) in a report released on Monday, ahead of the much-awaited COP28 climate change summit to be held later this month.
\nTitled \u2018The Climate Changed Child\u2019, the report mentioned that some 4.2 billion children are expected to be born over the next 30 years, and there will be no normal climate for them.
\nAccording to the report, 739 million children are exposed to high or extremely high water scarcity while 436 million children live in areas with high or extremely high water vulnerability besides 470 million children face high or extremely high drought risk.<\/p>\n
Around the world, extremes of drought, heat and flooding are becoming more common and are set to become more severe, with some regions already experiencing swings between the three and infrastructure and services struggling to cope with it, the report says.<\/p>\n
4.2bn children likely to be born over next 30 years will have no normal climate<\/p>\n
It says putting children at the centre of the global response to the climate crisis will not only protect the health and well-being of children, but also lead to stronger communities and more resilient economies. At COP28, world leaders and the international community must take critical steps for children to secure a livable planet, it says.<\/p>\n
Beyond COP28, Unicef is calling on parties to take action to protect the lives, health and well-being of children \u2014 including by adapting essential social services, empowering every child to be a champion for the environment, and fulfilling the international sustainability and climate change agreements including rapidly reducing emissions.<\/p>\n
The report, a supplement to the Unicef\u2019s Children\u2019s Climate Risk (2021), says children who live in low-income countries are at particularly high risk of harm caused by climate change.<\/p>\n
Children are particularly vulnerable to effects of the climate change. They are disproportionately affected by the impacts of disasters, environmental degradation and the climate crisis compared to adults through pollution, deadly diseases and extreme weather events.<\/p>\n
The report estimates that one in three children \u2014 or 739 million worldwide \u2014 already live in areas exposed to high or very high water scarcity, with climate change threatening to make this worse.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe consequences of climate change are devastating for children,\u201d says Unicef Executive Director Catherine Russell.<\/p>\n
\u201cTheir bodies and minds are uniquely vulnerable to polluted air, poor nutrition and extreme heat. Not only is their world changing, with water sources drying up and terrifying weather events becoming stronger and more frequent, so too is their well-being as climate change affects their mental and physical health. Children are demanding change, but their needs are far too often relegated to the sidelines,\u201d Russell says.<\/p>\n
Far too many children \u2014 436 million \u2014 are facing the double burden of high or very high water scarcity and low or very low drinking water service levels, known as extreme water vulnerability, leaving their lives, health, and well-being at risk. It is one of the key drivers of deaths among children under five from preventable diseases.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ISLAMABAD Almost one billion children are exposed to high or extremely high water stress, stated the United Nations Children\u2019s Fund (Unicef) in a report released on Monday, ahead of the much-awaited COP28 climate change summit to be held later this month. Titled \u2018The Climate Changed Child\u2019, the report mentioned that some 4.2 billion children are […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":180710,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[1796],"class_list":{"0":"post-368094","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world","8":"tag-unicef"},"yoast_head":"\n