UNICEF stands for the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, or United Nations Children's Fund. UNICEF is one of the largest development agencies dedicated to working exclusively with children to eliminate hunger and disease.
Thousands
of children under the age of five die every day due to the lack of
proper nutrition, safe drinking water, affordable vaccines and other
basic necessities that most people in the U.S. take for granted.
“UNICEF's lifesaving interventions and programs around the world
have helped reduce the number of child deaths by nearly 50% since
1990, and yet 18,000 children still die every day from preventable
causes. UNICEF helped immunize 38% of the world's children in 2013.”
Somali women and children have been
living in the harshest of conditions for over 20 years. Contributing
to the hunger issue are years of droughts, crop failure, depletion of
livestock, and rising food prices. Also, many women and children are
still out of reach of UNICEF support. “By the end of 2012, 2.12
million Somalis (more than half of whom are children), were in an
Acute Food Security Crisis, a significant decrease from 4 million at
the start of 2012 when areas of the country were still suffering from
the famine.” Although this is an improvement, reports showed that
children continue to suffer greatly, with 16% acutely malnourished,
and 3.5% severely so.
One in 10
Somali children die before their first birthday. Somalia has some of
the largest numbers of unimmunized children in the world and is thus
a breading ground for vaccine-preventable diseases such as polio and
measles. UNICEF cannot reach all the children to immunize them due to
politics, infrastructure, and other conflicts. This is such a shame,
especially when these vaccines are readily available in other parts
of the world.
Learning about the poverty in Somalia
has left me feeling empathic for the plight of the women and children
in that country. I am left feeling grateful for what I have and the
liberties I enjoy in the United Sates. I also feel empowered to do
something about it. That is why I am donating to the cause. Yes, if
my donation can help even one child, then that is one child who gets
to live a little longer. Each one can reach one.
To donate to UNICEF:
https://www.unicefusa.org/donate/donate-end-preventable-deaths-children
Viticha, you shared some good information about poverty in Somalia! It is always sad to hear about children and families suffering from poverty, but knowing that there is some type of help available makes me proud.
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