UNICEF Emergency Response

Dear Friend,

Children in the Horn of Africa are at risk of becoming victims of one of the worst climate-induced water and drought emergencies of the past 40 years. Four consecutive poor rainy seasons have left large swathes of Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya, Eritrea and Djibouti facing exceptional drought. Children and families have been pushed to the brink as crops fail and livestock die, damaging lives and livelihoods. The impact of the war in Ukraine has tipped more families in the Horn of Africa over the edge with increasing fuel prices and reduced availability of wheat imports for Horn of Africa countries. Some 10.5 million people – of which 5.2 million are children - are facing severe water shortages; and 16 million people require immediate food assistance as a result of the drought. In addition, across Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia, around 1.7 million children will require urgent treatment for severe acute malnutrition (SAM) by the end of this year. The drought crisis was already depriving children from the essentials of childhood – such access to food, safe water, school, and health services. Now the crisis is becoming a catastrophe, and child survival is at risk.

Thanks in part to your support, UNICEF is providing lifesaving support for these children including through scaling up family-led Middle Upper Arm Circumference (MUAC) screening for acute malnutrition. MUAC tapes are predominately used to measure the upper arm circumference of children, but also that of pregnant women, helping to identify malnutrition. These bands are an important method for screening a child’s nutrition status, allowing families to quickly recognize if their child is malnourished and seek supportive interventions. UNICEF is also ensuring the continuity of life-saving treatment through facility-based and mobile health and nutrition services and securing supplies of lifesaving Ready to Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF), a nutritious, energy dense peanut-based paste used to treat SAM in children under five years of age. In addition, UNICEF is supporting micronutrient supplementation across drought-affected countries, including in Kenya, where UNICEF is supporting Vitamin A supplementation for 5.4 million children.

Thank you for standing in solidarity with children throughout the Horn of Africa during this challenging time. As a result of your support, children’s lives are being saved on the ground. On behalf of them, thank you.

In partnership,

Whitney 

Dear Friend,

The war in Ukraine has left millions of children and their families in desperate need of safety, protection and humanitarian support. With continuing destruction of critical infrastructure, disruption of basic social services and economic activity and massive internal population displacement, humanitarian needs continue to worsen, leaving children and their families exposed to traumatic events, exposed to threat and highly vulnerable.

As of May 8, over 5.8 million people have fled across Ukrainian borders. Children are at the center of this emergency. At least two-thirds of Ukrainian children are displaced, internally and abroad. Children arriving in neighboring countries face significant risks of family separation, violence, sexual exploitation, and trafficking.

Keeping children and women safe as they make these difficult and unexpected journeys is one of UNICEF’s highest priorities. With your support, UNICEF and partners have established Blue Dot Hubs at key points along refugee routes. These Hubs bring together essential support services from a range of partners under one neutral logo – the Blue Dot. For children, Blue Dot hubs provide a safe, welcoming space to rest, play and simply be a child, at a time when their world has been abruptly turned upside down in fear and panic, and they are facing the trauma of leaving family, friends and all that is familiar.

UNICEF and partners currently plan to provide services through Blue Dot Hubs across Poland, Moldova, Romania, Belarus, Hungary, Slovak Republic and Italy. They will be sited at strategic points along routes including border entry/exit points, registration sites and some urban centers. Each hub has the capacity to support 3,000 to 5,000 people per day with a range of essential services and supplies including:

• Information and advice desk
• Child friendly spaces
• Family reunification services
• Dedicated mother and baby/toddler spaces
• Counseling and psychosocial support
• Referral services
• Medical and psychosocial first aid
• Safe areas to sleep

Thank you for continuing to stand along UNICEF in this work and for ensuring the safety and protection of children and their families impacted by the ongoing war in Ukraine.

In Partnership,

Whitney