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GENEVA/NEW YORK, 18 April 2024 – Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance and UNICEF welcome the news that a new oral cholera vaccine (OCV), Euvichol-S, has now received WHO prequalification and can be made available to countries around the world. The prequalification of this new product will help EuBiologics, the manufacturer, produce more volumes of vaccine,…

GENEVA/NEW YORK, 5 April 2024 – The arrival of rapid diagnostic test (RDT) kits for cholera in Malawi today signals the start of a global programme that will see more than 1.2 million tests distributed to 14 countries at high risk for cholera over the next several months. Countries that will receive kits in the coming weeks in this largest-ever…

GENEVA/NEW YORK, 20 March 2024 – Immediate action is needed to stem an unprecedented multi-year upsurge in cholera cases worldwide, according to the International Coordinating Group (ICG) on Vaccine Provision. Actions include investing in access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene, testing and detecting outbreaks quickly, improving quality of…

After years of steady decline, cholera has made a devastating comeback. A deadly combination of climate change, underinvestment in water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services, and in some cases armed conflict, has put over 1.1 billion people at risk, with children under five particularly vulnerable. UNICEF has established a Global Cholera…

Cholera doesn't know borders. Despite being preventable and easily treatable, children continue to suffer from the potentially fatal disease. After years of steady decline, cholera has made a devastating comeback. More than 1.1 billion people are at risk, with children under 5 especially vulnerable. The intestinal infection often spreads because…, What is cholera?  , Cholera is an intestinal infection. It’s caused by ingestion of food or water that’s contaminated with the bacterium Vibrio cholerae.  Researchers conservatively estimate that every year, there are as many as 4 million cholera cases globally and as many as 143,000 deaths. Young children, especially those under the age of 5, bear the brunt of the…, What makes a country cholera-endemic? , A cholera-endemic area is where cases have been detected during the past 3 years, and there’s evidence that it was caused by local transmission, rather than being imported from elsewhere. Meanwhile, a cholera outbreak (epidemic) can occur in countries where cholera does not regularly occur or in endemic countries.  Children in the village of Hatla…, How does cholera spread? , Cholera disproportionately affects the world’s poorest and most vulnerable communities. A lack of access to clean water and sanitation facilities is closely linked to an increased likelihood of cholera transmission. That means that children who are living in urban slums and camps for internally displaced people or refugees are particularly…, If a child is infected with cholera, what are the symptoms?  , Most children infected with cholera will have no or mild symptoms, and through the use of oral rehydration solution, they can be successfully treated. But if left untreated, the disease can kill within hours. Severe cases of cholera require rapid treatment with intravenous fluids and antibiotics.   After ingesting contaminated food or water, it…, How is cholera treated?  , If infected with cholera, most children can be treated successfully through the quick administration of oral rehydration solution (ORS), which is a mixture of salt and sugar. UNICEF and the World Health Organization distribute sachets of this solution that need to be dissolved in clean water.   From 2000 to 2019, the total annual number of deaths…, What can be done to prevent the spread of cholera?  , A multifaceted approach is key to controlling cholera and reducing deaths. First and foremost, ensuring that every child has access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation is essential. It’s also important that children in communities at risk have access to the WHO pre-qualified oral cholera vaccines.  Furthermore, community engagement…, Are there vaccines available to prevent cholera?  , There are currently three World Health Organization pre-qualified oral cholera vaccines: Dukoral, Shanchol and Euvichol-Plus. In order to be fully protected, all of these vaccines require two doses. The International Coordinating Group (ICG), which UNICEF is a member of, manages the global stockpile of oral cholera vaccines. The group has…, Where in the world are we seeing cholera outbreaks?  , In recent years, we’ve seen a surge in the number of cholera outbreaks globally. 30 countries faced cholera outbreaks in 2022 – an alarming 145 per cent average increase from the previous five-year average. Countries like Lebanon and Syria reported cholera for the first time in decades. Meanwhile, an outbreak in Haiti in 2022 had a significant…, How is UNICEF responding to these cholera outbeaks?  , UNICEF has stepped up efforts to respond to cholera outbreaks in coordination with national authorities and partners. That includes widely distributing millions of water treatment tablets to ensure families in impacted communities have access to safe water.   We also supply local health departments with oral rehydration salt sachets and zinc, in…, Are we close to eliminating cholera? , Through the successful adoption of prevention measures and increased access to cholera treatment methods, including oral rehydration salt and zinc, we’re closer than ever to ensuring that no child dies from this preventable disease.   In 2021, UNICEF distributed over 93 million zinc tablets and more than 30 million oral rehydration salt sachets…

UNICEF’s new Gender Policy (2021-2030) and Gender Action Plan (GAP 2022-2025) emphasize UNICEF’s commitment to promoting gender equality around the world and recognize the integral role that positive gender socialization plays in transforming harmful gender norms and practices.  With the International Step by Step Association (ISSA), UNICEF…

The media industry has an unprecedented influence on how entire societies perpetuate gender inequality, from discriminatory norms and stereotypes to the normalization of violence against girls. On the other hand, media reporting also has the immense potential to combat the root causes of violence against women and girls, promote positive social…

With the surge in interest amongst feminist, children’s rights, and parenting organisations to integrate concern for violence against women (VAW) and children (VAC) into parenting and family strengthening programmes, Promundo, UNICEF, and the Prevention Collaborative—some of the leading groups working at the intersection of VAW/VAC present the…

Media and advertising are key agents of socialization for children and adolescents. Promoting positive gender socialization through advertising means helping ensure that children consume media that support positive, inclusive and diverse social norms, rather than perpetuating discriminatory stereotypes that lead to negative outcomes for children…

Communication for Development (C4D) is one of the core change strategies that contribute directly to the achievement of results within each of the goal areas of the UNICEF Strategic Plan, 2018–2021. By identifying and addressing social norms, behaviours and practices, C4D strengthens programming and improves outcomes for children and adolescents.…, Communication for Development (C4D) is an evidence-based and participatory process that facilitates the engagement of children, families, communities, the public and decision makers in both development and humanitarian contexts through a mix of available communication platforms and tools. UNICEF promotes and applies C4D to drive positive…, Results, The most typical and also the most powerful way to work towards fulfilling children’s rights is in partnership – with governments, other United Nations agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), communities and families. Just as UNICEF does not stand alone, neither does Communication for Development.   Results stem from the collaboration of…, Two of the many important tools in the C4D toolbox, Screenshot of UNICEF's U-Report website UNICEF/2020 U-Report U-Report is a platform accessible by phone and computer which engages users via alerts, surveys and one-on-one chats. It is designed to address multiple issues affecting children, young people and communities by directly providing life-saving or changing information to them in a timely…, Generating demand for, and use of, services, Demand generation is the process of creating a need, or belief in the need, for a product or service among a particular target audience. C4D strategies stimulate or accelerate demand for services in a number of ways, including reducing stigma, developing gender-sensitive communication, and mass mobilization. Three girls in a refugee camp holding…, Adoption of key parenting and family practices, While children and their caregivers must demand, have access to and use services for their well-being, essential healthy and protective caregiving and family practices are equally important. These practices are not dependent on services, but have an almost exclusive behavioural component. Evidence has shown that these are critical to child…, Promoting positive parenting, Fostering fathers’ participation, particularly from the antenatal phase through early childhood, is an important area of work for UNICEF. More than half of children aged between 3 and 4 years old in 74 countries have fathers who do not play or engage in early learning activities with them (55 per cent, approximately 40 million). Social norms,…, Abandonment of harmful social norms or adoption of positive ones, By reinforcing positive norms that protect children, or encouraging the abandonment of social norms that condone or facilitate negative behaviours, C4D activities encourage parents, families and societies to change both behaviours and perceptions of what is socially acceptable, as well as encouraging agency in identifying and demanding related…, Promoting Positive Gender Socialization, In Egypt, girls face gender disparities and a high prevalence of harmful practices such as Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). In 2019, UNICEF supported the National Council for Childhood and Motherhood to design and implement the first national girls’ empowerment initiative, “Dawwie” (meaning “loud voice with an impact”).  A group of girls standing…, Engaging and empowering communities, adolescents and children, C4D strategies seek to engage and empower communities and young people, particularly the most marginalized, to enable them as agents of change in both development and humanitarian contexts. This includes efforts to systematize mechanisms for engagement to improve their health and well-being, to hold service providers and policymakers to account…, Strategic partnerships with faith leaders to facilitate community engagement, UNICEF has led a scaling up of the Faith and Positive Change for Children (FPCC) Global Initiative on Social and Behaviour Change. In the Niger, one of the five early adopters of FPCC, the commitment of communities, religious and traditional leaders have been essential to reducing and eliminating traditional practices that constitute violence…, System strengthening and regional efforts to effect change at scale, Under the guidance of regional offices, initiatives are carried out to generate multi-country behavioural evidence and to provide technical support for the development of conceptual frameworks, strategies and guidance. The following provide examples of results from three regions; examples from the other regions and at the global level can be found…, Looking forward, The outbreak of COVID-19 was first reported at the end of 2019, and had become a pandemic by early March 2020. At the time of writing, it has become clear that the global crisis will have a significant and severe impact on children. Basic services from health to education have been disrupted, and the wider socioeconomic impacts are yet to be…, Communication for Development (C4D)Advancing positive social and behaviour change Global Annual Results Reports 2019 SUPPLEMENT TO THE Cover image: UNICEF/UN0212225/Noorani A mother and father hold their newborn in a recovery room at UNICEF supported Al Quseya Central Hospital, Assuit governorate, Egypt. C4D initiatives in Egypt encourage…

This note for practitioners provides practical guidance on planning, implementing and monitoring interventions for promoting change in gender norms.

GENEVA/ NEW YORK, 30 October 2018 - This month, partners of the Global Task Force on Cholera Control (GTFCC) mark one year since the launch of Ending Cholera: A Global Roadmap to 2030 , which targets a 90% reduction in cholera deaths by 2030 and the elimination of cholera in at least 20 countries out of the 47 currently affected. At the 4 October…