Lack of clean water is far more deadly for children than bullets and bombs. Without water, children cannot survive
He is about to end up run over, his mother saves himWorldwide, more than 1,42 billion people, including 450 million children, live in areas of high or extremely high water vulnerability. This means that 1 in 5 children worldwide does not have enough water to meet their daily needs.
Unicef data, on the occasion of World Water Day, show that, in more than 80 pesos, children live in areas with high or extremely high water vulnerability. Eastern and Southern Africa has the highest percentage of children living in such areas, with more than half of children - 58% - having difficulty accessing sufficient water every day. It is followed by West and Central Africa (31%), South Asia (25%) and the Middle East (23%). South Asia is home to the largest number of children living in areas of high or very high water vulnerability: more than 155 million children.
The growing scarcity of water affects the health of children. Every day, more than 700 children under 5 die of diarrhea due to water and unsafe toilets and poor hygiene. When babies get diarrhea, they are unable to absorb the nutrients they need to grow. Over time, this can lead to stunted growth and can have an irreversible impact on children's physical and mental development. Approximately 144 million children under the age of 5 worldwide suffer from stunting.
Unicef's analysis, part of the “Water Security for All” initiative, identifies the areas in which poor levels of water service are added to the physical risks of water scarcity. Communities living in these areas depend on surface water, "unimproved" sources or water collection of which can take more than 30 minutes.
"The global water crisis is not simply on its way, it is already here, and climate change will only make it worse," said UNICEF Director-General Henrietta Fore. “Children are the most affected victims. When the wells dry up, it is the children who skip school to fetch water. When drought reduces food supplies, children suffer from malnutrition and stunted growth. When the floods hit, children get sick from water-related diseases. And when water resources dwindle, children cannot wash their hands to fight disease ”.
According to a 2019 UNICEF report, lack of clean water is far more deadly for children than bullets and bombs. Children under the age of five are more than 20 times more likely to die from diseases related to unsafe water and poor sanitation than from conflict.
According to the report, 85.700 children under 15 die each year from diarrhea related to unsafe water, sanitation and sanitation alone, compared to 30.900 for conflicts.
The report analyzes the death rates in 16 states affected by protracted conflicts and shows that in most of them children under 5 are even 20 times more likely to die from diarrhea due to lack of water and sanitation than by direct effect. of the fighting.
Without water, children simply cannot survive.
Source: Unicef
