UNICEF reveals 1.9 million children in Cameroon need urgent aid.

The statement was release as the world celebrates World Humanitarian Day, commemorated every August 19. The 2024 edition of the World Humanitarian Day was under the theme: “Acting for Humanity”. 

According to the statement, World Humanitarian Day is an opportunity for UNICEF Cameroon to remind the world that some 1.9 million children aged between zero 17 years are facing humanitarian challenges.

The increasing number, the statement added, has exposed the need to call for more donors to increase support to the Humanitarian Action for Children, HAC appeal.

“The situation of children in Cameroon is triggered by complex and multifaceted crises. Nine out of ten regions of Cameroon are affected by three protracted humanitarian crises: the Lake Chad basin conflict, the North-West and South-West crisis, and the impact of the influx of thousands of refugees from the Central African Republic,” part of the statement read.

According to Perrault, in addition to the structural challenges, several crises, combined with the impacts of climate change, are hindering the provision of basic social services for children and limiting their works on the field.

“UNICEF thanks its partners who often work in difficult conditions, taking sometimes calculated risks, to meet the needs of children even in hard-to-reach areas,” Perrault stated.

According to the UNICEF official, in Cameroon, aid workers continue to work under difficult conditions to support children affected by crises.

Perrault said it is thanks to their partners, that they have been able to significantly improve the living conditions of the vulnerable strata by also strengthening resilience and preparedness for future disasters.

The UN envoy in the statement noted that from January to July 2024, UNICEF and its partners have worked in several activities.

She cited the provision of life-saving treatment in UNICEF-supported health facilities to 35,910 children who were identified with severe wasting; offered child protection interventions to some 28,060 persons among them 20,315 children in crisis-affected regions.

The statement further noted that UNICEF and its partners have equally provided access to safe water and appropriate sanitation facilities to 137,126 persons and also played key role in the vaccination campaigns against yellow fever, polio, meningitis, and measles, in the country.

Most resources are needed by the vulnerable population, the statement detailed, include water, sanitation and hygiene, shelter and education. 

It regretted that as of July 31, 2024, just 23 percent of the required 230 billion FCFA funds have been received, critically hampering their capacity to deliver.

UNICEF Cameroon in the statement equally thanked its different donors and partners among them the Swedish International Development Agency, SIDA; the Republic of Korea; the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office of the Government of the United Kingdom, FCDO; the Central Emergency Response Fund, CERF of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, OCHA and the Directorate General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations, DG ECHO, for their contributions and continuous support.

This story was first published in The Guardian Post issue No:3204 Tuesday August 20, 2024