UN: According to a recent UNICEF report, weather-related disasters forced the displacement of an astounding 43.1 million children in 44 countries over the course of six years, or over 20,000 children per day. The first global estimate of the number of children uprooted from their homes between 2016 and 2021 as a result of floods, storms, droughts, and wildfires, “Children Displaced in a Changing Climate,” looks at projections for the following 30 years.
According to the UN agency, global risks of displacement due to flooding are expected to increase by as much as 50% with every extra 1C of warming. The crises’ magnitude was underscored by UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell. Any child finds it horrifying when a fierce wildfire, storm, or flood barrels into their village, according to her. Fear and its effects can be particularly devastating for individuals who are forced to escape, as they worry about whether they will ever be able to go back home, resume their studies, or avoid having to travel once more. Climate-driven activism will grow as a result of the severity of climate change, Ms. Russel predicted.
The chief of UNICEF urged immediate action to help communities get ready, safeguard children who may be displaced, and assist those who have already been uprooted. With 22.3 million child displacements, China, the Philippines, and India lead the world in absolute terms. The report attributes this to the countries’ geographic exposure to extreme weather, such as monsoon rains and cyclones, as well as to large child populations and increased pre-emptive evacuations.
However, small island nations like Dominica and Vanuatu were the most severely impacted by storms, while Somalia and South Sudan suffered the most from flooding-related displacements when the percentage of displaced children to the child population was taken into account. With limited investments in risk mitigation and preparedness, Haiti, which already faces a high risk of child displacement due to disasters, also struggles with violence and poverty. In Mozambique, the poorest communities—including those in urban areas—take a disproportionate toll from extreme weather events.
A startling 40.9 million, or 95%, of the child displacements between 2016 and 2021 that were recorded were due to floods and storms. Better reporting and proactive evacuation attempts were partly to blame for this. More than 1.3 million children were internally displaced as a result of droughts, with Somalia once again being among the worst impacted. Unprecedented floods in August 2022 submerged a third of Pakistan under water, resulting in billions of dollars’ worth of damage and uprooting some 3.6 million children, many of whom spent months without access to adequate housing, clean water to drink, or sanitary facilities.
According to UNICEF, wildfires caused 810,000 kid displacements, with more than a third taking place in just 2020 and the majority occurring in Canada, Israel, and the United States. UNICEF is encouraging governments, development partners, and the corporate sector to act now to protect children and young people who are susceptible to future displacement as nations prepare for the COP28 climate meeting in November.
The UN also urged states to strengthen youth resilience and ensure their involvement in developing inclusive solutions in order to better equip children and young people to survive in a world that has undergone climate change. In order to prepare for a future that is already taking place, UNICEF further emphasized the need to give children and young people, including those who have already been uprooted from their homes, priority in policies and investments.
We have the knowledge and resources to address this growing concern for kids, but we are moving much too slowly. Ms. Russell stated that we must step up our efforts to better assist individuals who have already been uprooted and to protect children who are at risk of being displaced.
