Draughts and declining aid worsened malnutrition situation of children Posted: 23 Feb 2014 09:13 AM PST Unicef Unicef Update to Friday’s – Unicef 2014 Appeal: Eritrea is located in one of the driest parts of Africa. Hydro-climatic conditions bring recurrent droughts, particularly in the Southern Red Sea, Gashbarka and Anseba regions, and negatively impact the overall health, development and well-being of women and children. These frequent droughts, combined with declining aid, have led to severe food shortages that have worsened the malnutrition situation of children. The nutritional sentinel site surveillance conducted in 2013 showed an increase in acute malnutrition among children under 5 in all regions. For example, in Gashbaraka, the wasting rate reported in July 2013 was 22.7 per cent compared with 14.5 per cent a year earlier. The impact of landmines and explosive remnants of war continued to have implications in communities affected by war, while humanitarian mine action programmes in Eritrea grew weaker. Only 25 per cent of mine fields have been cleared, and the injury burden increased from 58,111 cases in 2011 to 69,755 cases in 2012, with the majority of injuries and fatalities reported among children and young people. In the education sector, 33.7 per cent of children between the ages of 7 and 14 – mainly from disadvantaged groups with nomadic lifestyles – are out of school (84,616 males and 99,685 females). There are huge regional disparities in sanitation coverage, with the national coverage rate at 52 per cent and rural sanitation coverage at 25 per cent. In the Southern Red Sea and Anseba regions, sanitation coverage is approximately 52 per cent and 62 per cent respectively. Access to safe drinking water also remains a significant challenge. SOURCE: CAPITALNEWS
Posted on: Tue, 25 Feb 2014 15:02:00 +0000
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