XUNICEF News and Views

Anyone wishing to become to become a successful poet would do well to begin with cats, dogs and children as the subject for they provide a rich mine of material. One only has to think of Edward Lear (The Owl and the Pussy Cat), Spike Milligan (Lucy Pugh was only two), and Ogden Nash (A wet dog is the lovingest) to appreciate how such wordsmiths could compose something that was both poetic and memorable. Did I fancy my chances because I live where the Poet Laureate John Betjeman was buried, in a graveyard past which I walk almost every week ? The time was 1990, the place was Lisbon where I was undergoing a crash course in Portuguese for my next posting. I had been provided one-on-one tuition by two women who were both excellent tutors, and who were able to guide me in the idiosyncrasies of the language. They both were anxious that I get to appreciate Portuguese culture amongst which Portuguese ‘Fado’ is included. For those unfamiliar with ‘Fado’ and not inclined to ‘Google’ it, I

Thousands of children uprooted from DRC's strife-torn east Since March, "more than 190,000 people, half of them children, have been forced to leave their villages in the Rutshuru and Nyiragongo areas" of North Kivu province, says UN's children's agency. Rutshuru has seen a resurgence of violence in recent months with the presence of M23 rebels, who have been fighting DRC's army. (AFP Archive) Thousands of children have been forced to flee their homes in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) where security forces are battling M23 rebels, the UN's children's agency said. Since March, "more than 190,000 people, half of them children, have been forced to leave their villages in the Rutshuru and Nyiragongo areas," UNICEF said in a  statement  on Saturday. "Thousands of children are at risk and have very limited access to basic social services needed for their survival in this crisis," Grant Leaity, UNICEF representative in the DRC,

We have failed the world's children and adolescents living with HIV. According to  new estimates , only 52 per cent of children (0-14 years) living with HIV were receiving antiretrovirals (ART) in 2021 compared to 81 per cent of pregnant women and 76 per cent of adults. An astounding  800,000 children and adolescents living with HIV (0-14 years) are untreated , even though new testing technologies and HIV self-tests are more widely available, and paediatric ART options are better tolerated, more effective and cheaper than ever before. © UNICEF/UN0640787/Dejongh The new data provide updates on HIV epidemiology and the AIDS response for children, adolescents and women, showing that we are far from ending new HIV infections in children. About 160,000 new paediatric HIV infections occurred in 2021.  There are 21 HIV high burden countries and settings where progress in preventing vertical transmission has flatlined. The COVID-19 pandemic has thrown the world further off track to

About ten per cent of all orphans globally have lost one or both parents due to an AIDS-related cause https://data.unicef.org/topic/hivaids/orphanhood/   Fast fact: Of the 147 million orphans (0–17 years) globally, 14.9 million [confidence bounds: 11.9 million–18.3 million] lost one or both parents due to an AIDS-related cause in 2021. Protection, care and support for children affected by HIV and AIDS A growing number of countries are developing national action plans for orphans and other vulnerable children. As of 2021, an estimated 14.9 million [11.9 million–18.3 million] children worldwide had lost one or both parents to due to AIDS-related causes. Three quarters of these children (11.2 million [9.1–13.6 million]) live in sub-Saharan Africa. Children orphaned due to AIDS make up 10 per cent of all orphans worldwide, but 28 per cent of all orphans are in sub-Saharan Africa. The smallest proportion of orphans due to AIDS-related causes are in Middle East and North Africa (1 per cent).

Photo story: No country untouched by human trafficking Every country in the world is affected by human trafficking, whether as a country of origin, transit, or destination for victims. The vast majority of those trafficking women and girls, do so for purposes of sexual exploitation. Displaced girls like 11-year-old Anastasia, seen here leaving the Sighetu Marmației border crossing on a bus in northern Romania, are at particular risk. Displaced women and girls are especially at risk from gender-based violence, according to the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), which points out that conflict exacerbates the problem. In Gabon’s Government-owned centre for children in difficulty and at risk, UNICEF supports the youngest victims of trafficking and illegal migration. When conflict forces children to leave their homes, they risk injury, death and the prospect of being trafficked or forced into child labour – 30 per cent of those trafficked for forced labour, are female. From child marriage to

Welcome to the summary of selected articles that appeared last week on our website xunicefnewsandviews.blogspot.com Traveling to Cuba by Myra Rudin Myra Rudin shares many wonderful photos and memories of her 2017 visit to Cuba.  As she tells us, "Photographing a country caught in a time warp was an extraordinary and exciting experience."   Click here. Etienne Bashizi answers our 10 Questions this week.  En français;   In English . Click here to see the answers given by  earlier contributors .  Consider sending us your own responses to these ten questions at  xunicef.news.views@gmail.com   Tough days for the UN in West Africa - UN Peacekeeping has faced serious troubles for years, but this week was a particularly rough one in eastern DRC where anti-UN riots have resulted in deaths of so far killed at least 15 people, including 3 UN peacekeepers. The DRC wasn't the only country in West Africa where the UN forces are facing hard times - UN missions in Mali, Western Saha

  Dita Reichenberg  commented on  " FXB Climate Advocates - Fall Programme : Paula Claycomb " 21 hours ago Dear Paula, Thank you very much for this information. I am sharing it with our organization” Youth for climate justice”, that is the most active and well organized in the whole country.. Hope some of them will apply for the Program. Best regards. Dita     Kul Gautam  commented on  " Message from Siamak Namazi Thanking XUNICEF Members for their Support : Baquer Namazi " 21 hours ago Dear Baquer, So glad, our collective efforts on his behalf have brought some comfort to Siamak in the midst of his unbearable and unfair agony at Evin. Our solidarity and support will remain undiminished, and will hopefully bring a positive outcome soon. Cordially - Kul     Horst Cerni  commented on  " Weekly Digest for 17 to 24 July 2022 " 24 hours ago Just a short comment. I always look forward to the stories from Nuzhat and Ken and the Quick Chat. The one with Re