Press release from March 10th, 2021 |
Berlin / Cologne – Loud UNICEF After nearly a decade of violence, the situation of Syrian children is now worse than ever. Every day girls and boys are deprived of their elementary rights. Around 12,000 children have been killed or injured since the beginning of the war. Last year 511 girls and boys lost their lives and 699 were injured. These are just the verified cases. Despite a decline in violence, the United Nations continued to document 61 attacks on schools and 29 attacks on health facilities in 2020.
The Syrian conflict has also led to one of the worst educational disasters in recent history. Almost 2.5 million children in Syria and 750,000 refugee girls and boys in neighboring countries are currently unable to attend school. Today, six million children in the country alone are dependent on humanitarian aid.
Federal Minister Gerd Müller: “Syria is the greatest tragedy of this century. After 10 years of war, 22 million people in the entire crisis are dependent on humanitarian support. An entire generation of Syrian children knows nothing but fear and hardship. Corona is now added. In this situation, there were no Last year $ 5.4 billion to meet the most important aid needs. It’s an unbelievable scandal! UNICEF and the World Food Program have already had to suspend education and protection measures. At the Syria conference in late March, all donors must step up their efforts. And we need one new attempt for a lasting peace. Because there can be no ‘keep it up’ for the next 10 years. “
“The children in Syria long for security, for schools and a better future for themselves and their country. But hardship and deprivation have become a sad permanent condition for them to this day. Even when the violence subsides, there is no respite for the children in sight “, said Christian Schneider, Managing Director of UNICEF Germany. “We are doing everything we can to strengthen children and their families and, in particular, to give them access to education and learning opportunities, because education is the key to returning to peaceful coexistence.”
While the eyes of the world public were primarily focused on combating the Covid 19 pandemic, the situation of families in Syria continued to deteriorate over the past year. The economy is in decline. More and more parents do not know how to find the means to feed their children. According to current estimates, half a million Syrian children are already suffering from chronic malnutrition. In the north-west and north-east of the country, almost every third child is chronically malnourished. More and more parents see no choice but to send their children to work or to marry them off early.
The situation of the civilian population in northern Syria is particularly dire. Millions of internally displaced children in the north-west of the country suffer from the long and harsh winter in tents, emergency shelters or on construction sites. Three quarters of the children killed in the past year were killed in this region. It also records 93 percent of attacks on schools and 73 percent of recruiting and combat missions by minors. Against a background of growing poverty, many of the children join armed groups out of economic hardship to support their families. In the northeast, in the Al Hol camp and other camps, 22,000 children and young people from an estimated 60 countries are still waiting to leave for their home countries.
The situation of the refugee families in the neighboring countries Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq, Turkey and Egypt also remains difficult. Despite economic and political challenges, Syria’s neighboring countries have taken in 83 percent of all refugees from Syria. The Covid-19 pandemic and other challenges have resulted in the gross domestic product in the neighboring countries of Syria falling by up to 15 percent. As a result, more and more parents and children are at risk of poverty.
“Despite the great hardship of the Syrian children, we keep seeing incredible examples of resilience and determination in Syria. Ten years after the brutal conflict began, the children and the people of Syria continue to pursue their dreams. Children are the future of the country and our inspiration. They still need our support so that they are equipped with the necessary skills to rebuild Syria when peace returns, “said Ted Chaiban. UNICEF-Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa.
Together with its partners, UNICEF supports millions of Syrian girls and boys in Syria, Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon, Turkey and Egypt. The mission is one of the largest relief operations in the history of the international children’s aid organization. In 2020, for example, UNICEF helped more than 2.6 million children in Syria to be vaccinated against polio. Around 900,000 girls and boys in Syria and neighboring countries received routine vaccinations or were vaccinated against measles. 3.7 million children could be reached with learning programs and around 400,000 children received psychosocial help. The BMZ is one of the most important pillars of this work.
This year UNICEF needs 1.4 billion US dollars to support Syrian children in Syria and its neighboring countries.
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