The COVID-19 pandemic has led to an education emergency of unprecedented global scale. At its peak, over 190 countries closed schools in response to the health emergency, leaving 9 out of 10 enrolled learners around the world out of school. Although previous health emergencies – such as the H1N1 influenza pandemic in 2009 and the Ebola… Read more →←
In just a matter of weeks, the COVID-19 outbreak has already had drastic consequences for children. Their access to education, food, and health services has been dramatically affected across the globe. The impact has been so marked, that the UN Secretary General has urged governments and donors to offset the immediate effects of the… Read more →←
This blogpost summarizes recommendations for policy makers and explores 3 good practices for equitable remote learning, based on recent research conducted using data on education responses to COVID-19 from UNICEF staff in 127 countries. To help contain the spread COVID-19, schools have closed around the world, at its… Read more →←
The COVID-19 virus has challenged developed nations in ways that few could have predicted just a few weeks ago. In Iraq, my colleagues and I watch with trepidation as Europe and the US struggle to contain the virus. Hospitals are overwhelmed, there’s an acute shortage of testing and protective equipment, and the death toll continues to… Read more →←
Just as the coronavirus outbreak reached its peak in the Italian province of Lombardy a group of health care professionals, many with Papa Giovanni XXIII hospital in Bergamo, published a short commentary which caught the attention of staff at the UNICEF Office of Research – Innocenti in Florence. Their simple message: COVID-19 was… Read more →←
With the world staying home due to COVID-19, we see a rise in gender-based violence (GBV), including domestic violence. Recently, the UN reported that Lebanon and Malaysia, for example, have seen the number of calls to helplines double since this time last year; in China they have tripled, and in Australia, search engines are seeing the… Read more →←
While the world may have been caught off guard by the size and ramifications of the COVID-19 crisis, it should be prepared to respond to the increased risks to the wellbeing and safety of children and women. Violence against children and violence against women are widespread globally and intrinsically linked, sharing common risk factors… Read more →←
I don’t think many of us living and working in Italy really understood what was happening when the Government declared a six-month state of emergency on 31 January. Coronavirus was still new. We started getting phone calls from friends and colleagues from all over the world to check on our health and families. As the number of affected… Read more →←
Migration is a core coping strategy for many children and young people across the globe, whether on their own or with their families. But it can also make children and young people vulnerable to further harm and deprivation in the absence of adequate and reliable services and social and economic support. While levels of vulnerability are… Read more →←
On a recent trip to South Africa, I often heard it said that low-income groups have “good access to bad food and bad access to good food”. While the wealthier people can afford a variety of vegetables, fruits, nuts and lean meats, nutritious food is either too expensive or simply not sold in local shops in poorer areas. What people… Read more →←
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