Child protection

LYON, France/NEW YORK, 13 April 2023 - INTERPOL Secretary General Jürgen Stock and UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell have signed an agreement of cooperation that will support national governments around the world to prevent and address online child sexual exploitation and abuse and other child protection issues. Under the new agreement,…

UNICEF works to safeguard the rights of children, women and their communities before, during and after public health emergencies. A long-term vision for Public Health Emergency Preparedness and Response (PHE-PR) is set out in a new UNICEF White Paper, “Putting the Best Interest of Children, Women and their Communities at the Center of Public…

Maria, age 12, submitted a poem after leaving Odessa, Ukraine.   NEW YORK, 21 March 2023 – In commemoration of World Poetry Day, hundreds of children and young people around the world have published poems to highlight their experiences of conflict and war, and to call for peace, as part of UNICEF’s Poems for Peace initiative . Now in its fourth…

As prepared for delivery "Good morning. "I’ve come in from UNICEF’s regional office in West and Central Africa to warn about a rapidly accelerating crisis for children on Europe’s doorstep. "Ten million children in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger are in dire need of humanitarian assistance largely due to spiralling conflict, while nearly 4 million…

GENEVA/DAKAR/NEW YORK, 17 March 2023 –Ten million children in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger are in dire need of humanitarian assistance – twice as many as in 2020 – largely due to spiralling conflict, while nearly 4 million children are at risk in neighbouring countries as hostilities between armed groups and national security forces spill across…

I can’t recall a particular moment or event when we shifted toward systems-centered thinking in child protection, but I can trace its origins. When I started doing this important work in the early 1990s, we did our best to respond to the issues in front of us. Whether it was working with children formerly recruited by armed groups, children…

Ten million children in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger are in dire need of humanitarian assistance – twice as many as in 2020 – largely due to spiralling conflict, while nearly 4 million children are at risk in neighbouring countries as hostilities between armed groups and national security forces spill across borders. 'Extreme Jeopardy' looks at…, Benin. Two brothers sit outside their home in Tanguieta, northern Benin. Two brothers sit outside their home in Tanguieta, northern Benin., What’s happening in the central Sahel? , Caught between armed groups, national security operations and intercommunal violence children are finding themselves directly targeted by non-state armed groups who operate across large areas of the region. 2022 was a particularly violent year for children in the central Sahel, almost certainly the deadliest since armed conflict broke out in…, The crisis is marked by attacks on infrastructure…, Burkina Faso. A girl drinks water from a tap at a playground in Burkina Faso. A girl drinks water from a tap at a playground in Burkina Faso. In Burkina Faso, attacks include sabotaging water networks – cutting power lines and destroying generators or electrical panels at pumping stations that feed urban water supply systems – and damaging manual…, …and education, Niger. A boy writes on a chalkboard in Niger. A boy writes on a chalkboard in Niger. Some armed groups that oppose state-administered education burn and loot schools, and threaten, abduct or kill teachers. By 2022, more than 8,300 schools had shut down across the central Sahel because they were directly targeted, teachers had fled, or because…, A changing climate is layering one crisis on top of another, Côte d'Ivoire. Women and children collect water in Tougbo, in the north of Côte d’Ivoire. Women and children collect water in Tougbo, in the north of Côte d’Ivoire. The central Sahel is one of the most climate-affected and water-scarce regions on the planet. Temperatures are rising 1.5 times faster than the global average. Water tables have…, It’s time to turn the page, Burkina Faso. A child waves at site for internally displaced persons. A child waves at a site for internally displaced children and families in Barsalogho, in the north central region of Burkina Faso. UNICEF urges governments across the central Sahel and affected coastal countries, along with technical and financial partners, to prioritize…, How UNICEF is helping, Burkina Faso. A boy walks into a school in Kaya, in the north central region of Burkina Faso. A boy walks into a school in Kaya, in the north central region of Burkina Faso. UNICEF has a large operational footprint in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, with almost 600 staff members working across the three national offices and 12 sub-offices, including…, Ten million children in the central Sahel need humanitarian assistance amid spiralling conflict and punishing climate. U NIC EF/ UN 05 381 08 /Ke ta EXTREME JEOPARDY UNICEF | CHILD ALERT | March 2023 BeninGhana TogoCte dIvoire BurkinaFaso NigerMali EXTREME JEOPARDY: TEN MILLION CHILDREN IN THE CENTRAL SAHEL NEED HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE AMID…

ANKARA, 28 February 2023 – UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell today concluded a two-day visit to Türkiye, where she met with children and families affected by the powerful earthquakes that hit southeast Türkiye and northern Syria earlier this month. Russell highlighted the importance of social services, including water and sanitation, and…

Social protection has emerged as a crucial policy and programme measure to reduce poverty and help those impacted by crises to prepare for, cope with and recover from shocks. Despite the recognition of the value of social protection, only 26.4 per cent of children globally receive social protection benefits.  Global data on access to social…

Man stands in front of blue screen. © UNICEF/UN0762850/McIlwaine Naysán Sahba, Director, Division of Global Communication and Advocacy Full credit must be given. Naysán Sahba was appointed Director of UNICEF’s Division of Global Communication and Advocacy in January 2023.  Naysán returned to UNICEF from the World Bank Group where he served as the…, Resources for the press, Media contacts See UNICEF's range media contacts, available as communications resources for press colleagues. Press centre Browse our extensive resources for journalists and media, showcasing UNICEF's efforts around the world. Experts Talk to our leading experts, available for commentary on child health, nutrition, protection, water, sanitation,…, More UNICEF to explore

KINSHASA, 27 January 2023 – UNICEF has called for the immediate and unconditional release of at least 13 children reported to have been abducted this week by a non-state armed group during an attack near the city of Butembo, in the North Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The 11 boys and two girls – aged between 12 and 14 - are…

An estimated 230 million girls and women worldwide have undergone some form of female genital mutilation (FGM) – many before the age of 15. Despite being internationally recognized as a human rights violation, FGM persists for various reasons. No matter where or how it is performed, FGM causes extreme physical and psychological harm., What is FGM?, Female genital mutilation (FGM) refers to all procedures involving partial or total removal of the female external genitalia or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons. It is most often carried out on young girls between infancy and age 15. In every form in which it is practiced, FGM is a violation of girls’ and women’s…, How is FGM a risk for girls and women?, FGM has no health benefits and can lead to serious, long-term complications and even death. Immediate health risks include haemorrhage, shock, infection, HIV transmission, urine retention and severe pain. Psychological impacts can range from a girl losing trust in her caregivers, to longer-term feelings of anxiety and depression. In adulthood,…, Why is FGM still practiced?, Numerous factors contribute to the persistence of the practice. Yet in every society in which it occurs, FGM is an expression of deeply rooted gender inequality. Some societies see it as a rite of passage. Others use it to suppress a girl’s sexuality or ensure her chastity. FGM is not endorsed by Islam or Christianity, but religious texts are…, How is FGM a human rights violation?, No matter how it is practiced, FGM is a violation of universal human rights principles. FGM violates the principles of equality and non-discrimination on the basis of sex. It violates the right to freedom from torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. It violates the right to the highest attainable standard of health, the right to…, How prevalent is FGM?, While the exact number of girls and women to have undergone FGM worldwide remains unknown, at least 230 million girls and women from 31 countries across three continents have been subjected to the practice. UNFPA estimates that over 4 million girls are at risk of FGM each year. In 2021, an additional 2 million cases of FGM were predicted to occur…, Where is FGM most common?, Although FGM is declining in the majority of countries where it is most prevalent, progress eliminating the practice has been uneven. In some countries, FGM remains as common today as it was three decades ago. Over 90 per cent of women and girls aged 15 – 49 have undergone some form of genital mutilation in Guinea and Somalia., What is the medicalization of FGM?, An alarming trend in some countries is the medicalization of FGM, in which the procedure is carried out by a health-care provider. Approximately one in four FGM survivors – some 52 million women and girls worldwide – were subjected to FGM at the hands of health personnel. Medicalization not only violates medical ethics, but it also risks…, How are attitudes towards FGM evolving?, Girls’ and women’s attitudes about FGM vary widely across countries where the practice is prevalent, but opposition is mounting.  Around 400 million people in FGM-practicing countries in Africa and the Middle East – two thirds of the population – are against it. Education is a pivotal factor: Girls and women with primary education are 30 per cent…, What is UNICEF doing to stop FGM?, Eliminating FGM requires coordinated efforts that engage whole communities – young people, parents, religious leaders, civil society organizations, activists, medical personnel, educators and policymakers. One of the most effective ways to end FGM is through collective abandonment, in which an entire community chooses to forgo the practice. This…, What impact has UNICEF’s work had?, Since the establishment of the UNFPA-UNICEF Joint Programme on the Elimination of Female Genital Mutilation , 13 countries have passed national legislation banning FGM. The programme has also helped more than 6 million girls and women receive prevention, protection and treatment services related to FGM. Some 45 million people in communities across…, Learn more about FGM, Hear stories from survivors