MYANMAR – Over 3.4 million people have been displaced across the country, nearly 40 percent of whom are children, said Ted Chaiban, Deputy Executive Director of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
The humanitarian crisis in Myanmar is reaching a critical inflection point, and about one million people were affected by both armed conflict and Cyclone Yagi, he said.
Moreover, children also represent 32 percent of the over 1,000 civilian casualties from landmines and explosive remnants of war. Access remains constrained by ongoing armed conflict, insecurity, bureaucratic impediments, and a lack of telecommunications and personal protective equipment.
UNICEF and its humanitarian partners were working tirelessly to deliver life-saving services, including health, education, and nutrition, as much as possible, and UNICEF funding is less than 25 percent of the amount requested for 2024.
Ted Chaiban urged all parties to protect and secure children in conflict zones and not to obstruct humanitarian assistance.
