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Dec 05, 2023

Standing Up for Children in Pakistan This Ramadan

UNICEF is committed to helping Pakistan's families rebuild their lives after

UNICEF is committed to helping Pakistan's families rebuild their lives after 2022's devastating floods.

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As Muslim families come together around the world to commemorate the holy month of Ramadan, nearly 10 million children and their families in Pakistan still need immediate, lifesaving support as they struggle to survive the aftermath of the unprecedented 2022 floods.

The "monsoon on steroids" that left huge swathes of Pakistan underwater, swallowing up villages and turning others into islands, is over, but the damage remains.

UNICEF has been on the ground for months, working with partners to respond to urgent humanitarian needs, while restoring and rehabilitating existing health, water, sanitation and education facilities for families returning home.

Up to 4 million children are still living in close proximity to stagnant and contaminated floodwaters, endangering their health and safety. By Dec. 2022, UNICEF had provided more than a million people in flood-affected areas with access to safe drinking water.

To help children survive freezing temperatures, UNICEF is distributing jackets, blankets, quilts and winter kits containing warm clothing.

UNICEF works with partners to meet children's immediate needs and strengthen the systems children rely on to grow up healthy and safe. It will take months, if not years, for families to recover from the devastation caused by the floods.

Many of the districts hardest hit by the flooding were already among the country's most vulnerable, with high rates of poverty and malnutrition. Families lost everything — houses, crops, livelihoods, schools, health facilities.

UNICEF is committed to helping Pakistan's families rebuild their lives, and build community resilience to help withstand future climate-related shocks.

In the coming year, UNICEF plans to treat 1.6 million children under 5 for severe wasting, the most visible and life-threatening form of malnutrition.

PHOTO FIRE © UNICEF/UN0761220/Butt Above, in Zangi Brohi Village, Dadu District, Sindh, Nadiya keeps her 8-month-old son, Ataullah, warm by the stove.

By early January 2023, UNICEF health interventions had reached 1.5 million people with primary health care services, while 4.5 million children had been immunized against polio in 16 flood-hit districts.

To help Pakistan's children reach their full potential, UNICEF is repairing and reopening damaged schools, and establishing temporary learning centers. Some of the eager young students have never been to school before. They are excited to have a safe place to learn and play and grow.

None of this work would be possible without the sustained support of donors and partners committed to supporting the rights of children not just in Pakistan but around the world to grow up healthy and hopeful for a brighter future.

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UNICEF is distributing urgently needed supplies and cash transfers, and reaching children on the move with psychosocial support.

Families are preparing emergency "go bags" following the collapse of the Kakhovka dam in southern Ukraine.

For UNICEF, an opportunity to highlight urgent needs of vulnerable children already suffering the worst effects of climate change.