Global

Three different families. Three different stories. With one thing in common: Whatever a family’s situation, growing up feeling loved makes a critical difference in a child’s life. A mother hugs her daughter in Bolivia Becoming a single parent in Bolivia has meant a radical change in Sandra’s life. > Read now A man hugs his granddaughter A…, Raising the next generation, “I don’t know yet if I am a good mother, I only know I love my daughter.” Sandra, mother of Nathaly In the northern outskirts of La Paz in Bolivia, many women face the challenge of raising children on their own in an environment marked by economic hardships and patriarchal traditions. For Sandra, who studies law in the morning and designs shawls…, Rebuilding a family, A man hugs his granddaughter. When a devastating earthquake hit Türkiye on 6 February 2023, 10-year-old Sidra and her family's life was changed forever. As Sidra navigates life after the disaster and the death of her father and sister, her grandfather Hassan has stepped in as a pillar of strength and support. A young girls sitting alongside her…, A safe place, A family of three - parents and their son in the middle. In the face of their own mental health challenges, Eleanor, a journalist, and Robin, a major crimes detective, always knew parenting wouldn't be easy. Eleanor, diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder and Generalized Anxiety Disorder, has been living with these conditions since childhood.…, The power of parenting, Every child deserves to grow up in a loving, nurturing and safe environment. But providing nurturing care takes time and resources – things that many parents and caregivers don’t have.  UNICEF believes every parent and caregiver should receive the support they need to give their children the best possible start in life. Caregivers who receive the…

Vaccines save lives – about 4.4 million each year. But vaccines do more than just save lives, they give children the opportunity to grow up healthy and reach their full potential – an opportunity that these fathers are making sure to secure for their children. Maksym, pictured above, holds his seven-month-old son Oleksandr at a clinic in Kyiv,…

Consecutive years of below-average rainfall in the Horn of Africa have created one of the worst climate-related emergencies of the past 40 years. The protracted drought is forcing families to leave their homes in search of food and water, putting their health, safety and education at risk. Over 20 million people, including 10 million children, in…, Forced to abandon home, 10-year-old Hibo carries water in a jerrycan to her temporary home in an IDP camp in Somalia 10-year-old Hibo carries water in a jerrycan to her temporary home in a camp for internally displaced people in Somalia. “We left our home in Guriel and walked for 10 days to reach Kaharey camp," she says. The scale of the displacement is immense – Somalia…, Daily life rationed, Hafsa Bedel, a mother of six, is struggling to save the lives of her young camels. Hafsa Bedel, a mother of six, is struggling to save the lives of her young camels in Ethiopia. Having already lost 25 livestock, she keeps them close to home for fear of them not finding food and water. “I can’t afford to feed them corn. We don’t even have enough…, A question of survival, Muna holds her baby Sukra in a UNICEF-supported Stabilisation Centre treating children with malnutrition in Somalia. Baby Sukra at a UNICEF-supported centre where children are treated for malnutrition in Somalia. Poor access to safe water jeopardizes a child’s chance of survival. Water scarcity increases the risk of diarrhoea, a major killer of…, Education on hold, Drought is affecting school attendance in the affected areas. Overall, 15 million children in the Horn of Africa are now out of school and an additional estimated 3.3 million children are at risk of dropping out due to drought.   Abdurazak Mohammed, a sixth grader, takes his donkeys back home at dusk Abdurazak Mohammed, a sixth grader, takes his…, Responding to the crisis, UNICEF and partners are providing life-saving services to children and their families in dire need across the Horn of Africa. We are on the ground providing essential health, nutrition, education and child protection services. To provide longer term solutions, we’re working to improve access to climate-resilient water, sanitation and hygiene…, What needs to happen, UNICEF has launched a regional call to action to address the drought crisis. If immediate funding needs are met, life-saving support may avert catastrophic consequences. But recurrent droughts and increasing water insecurity need long-term investments in water, sanitation and hygiene services, water management, and climate-proof infrastructure. …

What would you take if you had only hours – even minutes – to decide before being forced to flee your home? And what if you didn’t know how long you’d be gone, or what would be left of your home should you return? These are questions that a growing number of refugees have had to confront as new waves of violence and protracted crises worldwide…

Many people have never heard of severe wasting , also known as ‘severe acute malnutrition’. But that doesn’t change how excruciatingly painful the condition – which is caused by a lack of nutritious food and repeated bouts of diseases such as diarrhoea, measles and malaria – is for the millions of children battling it. Children with severe wasting…, Detection, A nurse weighs a child at a malnutrition rehabilitation centre in Nouakchott, Mauritania. A nurse weighs a child at a malnutrition rehabilitation centre in Nouakchott, Mauritania. Young children who have gone without food rapidly lose a lot of bodyweight, often exacerbated by bouts of infectious diarrhoea, until they become so thin and weak that…, Treatment, A mother comforts her severely malnourished child at stabilisation centre in Hargeisa, Somaliland. A mother comforts her severely malnourished child at a stabilization centre in Hargeisa, Somaliland. Hundreds of thousands of children in Somalia are at risk of developing severe wasting. Three consecutive seasons of failed rains, combined with…, Prevention, A mother in Yemen receives information on nutrition and other health issues in a village in Taizz governorate, Yemen. A mother in Yemen receives information on nutrition and other health issues in a village in Taiz governorate, Yemen. In Yemen, UNICEF is working with partners to empower new and expecting mothers with accurate information on…

For some it's a sense of duty. For others it's an obligation. And then there are those for which it’s a necessity.   Two years ago the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus outbreak a global pandemic. Nobody knew exactly what lay ahead. But over the course of the following 24 months, extraordinary women and men have risen to the…, A Ugandan healthcare worker uses a megaphone to encourage her community to get vaccinated , When Judith Candiru was growing up, she always admired the white outfits nurses wore. For her, it was emblematic of the care they provided. Now she’s one of them. She takes pride in putting on that sharp uniform, complete with a yellow belt.   Judith Candiru, an Assistant Nursing Officer in the Yumbe District of Uganda, provides COVID-19…, Climbing mountains and crossing canyons in Nepal with vaccines on her back , Birma Kunwar has been weaving her way up mountains and across suspended footbridges for years now. With a box of vaccines perched on her back , she ascends hilly pathways in the remote part of Nepal’s far west.   Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, Kunwar would collect lifesaving vaccines in the town of Khalanga, which is the district headquarters…, The teenage innovator whose invention is making handwashing safer , Emmanuel Cosmos Msoka is an innovator and an activist. It’s no coincidence that the 18-year-old from Tanzania invented a crucial hygiene tool during the pandemic that has a water theme to it.  “I was born at the foot of Africa’s highest peak, Mount Kilimanjaro," he says. The only place in my country where water turns to snow and ice.”  18-year-old…, Caring for her siblings while studying in times of loss  , Keysha is 14 years old. But her wisdom and thoughtfulness go beyond her years, as she’s had to grow up fast. Her mother, who worked at a restaurant, lost her life to COVID-19.  “Our mother worked 12-hour days when the restaurant opened for business again,” Keysha says. “Her immune system was weak, that’s probably why she got COVID.”  14-year-old…

11 February marks the International Day of Women and Girls in Science. To celebrate the occasion, we're paying tribute to the incredible contribution of women to the COVID-19 response globally.  The coronavirus pandemic has put unprecedented pressure on health workers. Some are working around the clock to care for patients. Others are increasing…, Warriors on the ward in Haryana, India, India’s health system has been stretched to the breaking point many times during the pandemic, with the bulk of the caring burden on women.  Women are estimated to make up to 30 per cent of doctors and more than 80 per cent of nurses and midwives. Medical staff in India and around the world have saved millions of lives, often while risking their…, Men, follow my lead, Mariam is a Malian refugee. She became the first woman to receive the COVID-19 vaccine in the M’Berra refugee camp, in south-east Mauritania.  “We often face misinformation," says Mariam, as she speaks about life in the camp. “Many people are illiterate, so it's 'word of mouth' that prevails. It is thanks to vaccination that we can all get out of…, Putting patients first, "I live with my husband, three children and my mother, who is 80 years old. I was still breastfeeding when I started work at the COVID-19 intensive care unit,” says Jennifer Boateng, a Senior Pharmacist at the Greater Accra Regional Hospital in Ghana.  “I was truly terrified of contracting the virus and putting my family at risk,” she remembers. “…, No one is safe until everyone is safe, Female health workers from a clinic in Kupang, Indonesia, travel to local communities to hold vaccination events. Indonesia has felt the impact of the pandemic, with one of the highest death tolls worldwide.  More than 25,000 children have lost at least one parent to COVID-19.  Across Indonesia, the COVID-19 response is also being supported by…, On the ground at the world's largest supply and logistics hub for children, Etleva Kadilli is the Director of UNICEF’s Supply Division, where women represent more than half of the workforce in a traditionally male-dominated sector. In 2021, over $6.2 billion worth of goods and services was procured by UNICEF. The pandemic brought an exponential demand for COVID-19-related supply items, such as personal protective…, Life-saving information, Victoria is a social mobilizer in Yambio, South Sudan. She's part of UNICEF's Social and Behaviour Change programme, which engages children, youth and communities on issues that affect them.  Access to information is an enormous challenge in South Sudan. Insecurity, displacement, illiteracy, poverty, gender inequities and the fact that 83 per cent…, The kids are on board, Twelve-year-old Jessica from the Himalaya Boarding School in Kathmandu, Nepal, receives a COVID-19 vaccine from a female health worker.  Nepal’s health service is bolstered by more than 50,000 female community health volunteers .   Their role has extended during the pandemic, to include informing the public about preventative measures, such as…, Incredibly dedicated, Daria Shulha, 32, is a doctor at Kharkiv’s Infectious Diseases Hospital in Ukraine. “We see patients at the stage that it will take an incredible effort to bring them back to life,” says Daria.  The intensive care department where Daria works has six beds. Some of her patients have been hospitalized for several weeks.  “After such a long time, you…, Sharing science to reduce hesitancy, Young women in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, listen to UNICEF’s Bérangère Antoine explain how and why the COVID-19 vaccines work.    At a workshop, one participant shares: “I was afraid to get vaccinated until now. After the awareness session, the fear diminishes.” UNICEF's Bérangère Antoine explains the benefits of the vaccine against COVID-19 during a…, Big sister! V is for vaccinated, Tomilyn, 10, holds her newborn baby sister in Buéa Regional Hospital, Cameroon. She was delivered by one of the world's 1.9 million midwives, 93 per cent of whom are women.  COVID-19 vaccines reduce the risk of serious illness if women get COVID-19 during pregnancy .  Tomilyn says that she already understands the importance of vaccinations and…

A child’s first bite of food is celebrated among families around the world. It marks a new phase of discovery – new tastes, textures and smells. A nutritious diet in early childhood has the power to shape a healthier future for a child, helping to build a strong immune system, fuel a growing body and nourish a developing brain. Sadly, millions of…

2020 was the hottest year on record. Atmospheric carbon dioxide levels are the highest they have been in at least 3.5 million years. In many parts of the world, people are facing multiple climate-related impacts such as severe drought and flooding, air pollution and water scarcity, leaving their children vulnerable to malnutrition and disease.…, Afghanistan, A woman and child walk on snow on a hazy day in Afghanistan On a heavily polluted morning, a mother walks with her daughter across a snow-covered area of Kabul, Afghanistan. Children in Kabul are at increased risk of respiratory infections including pneumonia, from the burning of fossil fuels and other environmental contaminants. Child deaths from…, Bangladesh, Two boys riding a bicycle on a dusty road Children riding a bicycle on a severely polluted road in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Air pollution in Dhaka is contributing to health complications like asthma, dust allergy, heart disease and lung cancer. UNICEF is teaming up with young climate activists to raise awareness about climate change and the need to act…, Cambodia, A man holding a child on his shoulders wades through flood waters A man and his son wade through floodwaters on the outskirts of Phnom Penh, Cambodia. In 2020, the country was hit by some of the worst flooding it has experienced in almost a decade, affecting the livelihoods of 900,000 people. Schools were shut and the risk of waterborne diseases…, Cote d’Ivoire, A woman collects plastic waste in Abidjan Ki Mariam, 31, is a plastic waste collector in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. Over the next 30 years, the world may produce four times more plastic than ever before. Without plastic waste management, groundwater pollution, plastic-clogged drains and air pollution from burning trash may threaten access to clean…, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Children play on parched earth outside their school When heavy rains caused the Mutahyo River in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to overflow in 2020, several villages and farming areas were flooded. Eighty per cent of the fields in Masisi Territory were damaged or completely destroyed and livestock and food stocks were washed away. Teachers…, Fiji, A group of boys sitting inside a library without a roof Students Ame, Paula, Ratu Luke and Semi Nataba, in the school library destroyed by Tropical Cyclone Yasa in Fiji in January 2021. When this category five cyclone, expected to affect more than 850,000 Fijians, made landfall in Fiji, UNICEF was on standby to respond, by providing tents and…, Guatemala, A family assesses their destroyed property Sonia Magaly Pa and her two children, Hernan, 13, and Dafne, 7, assess the damage after Hurricanes Eta and Iota passed through Guatemala in 2020. They lost their home and most of their belongings and had to move into a temporary shelter. The storms caused landslides and flooding affecting nearly 1.9…, Mozambique, A family walking through flooded paddy fields A woman carrying a child, makes her way to a relocation centre through a flooded area in Mozambique. Families moved there seeking aid and shelter from Tropical Cyclone Eloise that brought powerful winds, torrential rain and severe flooding in January 2021. It damaged and destroyed farmland, vital…, South Sudan, A UNICEF staff member carrying supplies UNICEF emergency specialists carry buckets for water purification and other emergency supplies, including hygiene kits, to be distributed along the overflowing Pibor River in South Sudan. Due to heavy seasonal rains and flooding in several parts of South Sudan in 2020, UNICEF is focused on making clean water…, Zimbabwe, School children walking through dry land Children walk between crop fields in Zimbabwe. The eastern parts of the country suffered the combined effects of Cyclone Idai in 2019 and severe drought in 2020. The drought led to food insecurity where it was estimated that 1.1 million women and children would require humanitarian nutrition assistance,…, UNICEF's climate action, UNICEF works tirelessly to protect and prepare children and young people in the climate crisis by raising awareness, securing action and supporting children and youth engagement. In 2020, and despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, UNICEF supported governments in 74 countries in climate and environmental programming, and our advocacy and…

Photography by: Mary Gelman / VII Photo; Reporting by: Fiston Mudacumura; Photo Editor, Text Editor & Producer: Kaley Sweeney, Digitizing savings, “The core of my excitement about technology is how it makes achieving a task easy and fast, and how it makes almost everything about it more beautiful, contained and organized.”  Carine, 21, is a software engineer in Kigali, Rwanda, who designs apps to encourage savings and financial independence. “The core of my excitement about technology is how…, Pioneering gender data capture, Jessica smiles for a conceptual portrait in the Girl Effect Rwanda office. The collage overlay showcases a screen grab from the Technology Enabled Girl Ambassador app. Jessica smiles for a conceptual portrait in the Girl Effect Rwanda office. The collage overlay showcases a screen grab from the Technology Enabled Girl Ambassador app. "Technology…

Photography by: Mary Gelman / VII Photo; Reporting by: Constantin Gouvy; Photo Editor, Text Editor & Producer: Kaley Sweeney, Shattering gender stereotypes, "Gendered education might start with toys and clothing, but it also influences the subjects boys and girls go on to study and the careers they pursue,” says Yasmeen.  At only 13, she and her friends are building a website to tackle the negative gender stereotypes that perpetuate the gender digital divide. “Our goal is to provide an online resource…, Dismantling the rural-urban divide, In France, boys and men are more than twice as likely to graduate in STEM subjects than girls and women are, and nearly four times as likely to be employed as Information and Communications Technology (ICT) specialists, according to the European Commission’s 2020 Women in Digital Scoreboard. This gap is particularly visible in rural areas, where…

Photography by: Mary Gelman / VII Photo; Reporting by: Rana Husseini; Photo Editor, Text Editor & Producer: Kaley Sweeney, Advancing computer literacy through WhatsApp, “My idea is to be able to use the digital training I learned in Jordan to invent something that can help people,” says Hala, 15, a Syrian refugee living in Za’atari camp in Jordan.  In 2019, she enrolled in a UNICEF-supported programme to improve her knowledge and proficiencies in computer and mobile applications, and video editing. “My idea is to…, Sharing skills through social media, A collage of Sally in her home in Irbid, Jordan. The overlay showcases her digital skills homework. Sally smiles for a remote portrait in her home in Irbid, Jordan. The overlay showcases her schoolwork on digital skills training. In order to keep pace with a growing workforce, the national economy of Jordan needs to create 66,000 new jobs annually…