According to the UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF, more than 290 schools have been damaged or destroyed in Ituri this year alone, bringing the total number of children outside the school in the province to over 1.3 million.
Protective crisis
Between January and April 2025, an increase in violence expelled more than 100,000 people – half of them children. During this period, reported cases of abduction, mutilation, sexual violence and recruitment and use of children from armed groups by 32 percent compared to the same timeframe last year.
John Adbor, UNICEF’s representative in DRC, referred to the situation as a “protection crisis” in which he said, “Violence and conflict crush children’s right to learn – to put them at a much greater risk of being recruited by armed groups, exploited and abused.”
“The needs are huge and our resources are not enough,” added Mr. Adbor and referred to UNICEF’s emergency preparedness in the region.
With more than 1.8 million conflict -affected children who are now out of school across DRC, UNICEF prioritizes mental health and psychosocial support through child -friendly spaces, re -integration of children previously associated with armed groups and treatment of acute malnutrition.
That approves two new vaccines to protect infants from RSV
Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) is the leading cause of serious lung infections in young children globally, resulting in approximately 100,000 deaths each year among children under five.
Alarmingly, 97 percent of these deaths occur in low and middle -income countries.
Although RSV can infect people of all ages, “it is especially harmful to infants, especially those born prematurely,” said Kate O’Brien of the World Health Organization (WHO).
About half of all RSV-related deaths occur in babies younger than six months.
New immunization products
Friday, issuing recommendations to two new immunization tools: a moder vaccine administered to pregnant women in their third trimester to protect their newborns; And a long -acting antibody injection for infants that begin to protect within a week’s administration and lasts for at least five months.
Given the global burden of severe RSV disease in infants who recommend that all countries adopt either the moderation vaccine or antibody injection as part of their national immunization strategies.
“These RSV immunization products can transform the fight against severe RSV disease, dramatically reduce admissions and deaths and ultimately save many infant life all over the world,” said Mrs. O’Brien.
DIRE Hurricane forecasts Connection Haiti evil
The UN humanitarian has caused an alarm over Haiti’s increased vulnerability to natural disasters and warned that the country’s limited capacity to respond could be tested seriously during the 2025 -e -season -the prognosis to be significantly more intense than the average in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Waste burns on the coast of Haiti.
When he runs from June to November, the upcoming season poses a serious threat to poor Iceland nation, where the economic crisis, continuous gang -related violence and violent uncertainty have already displaced over a million people.
Shearing sites in danger
More than 200,000 people are currently living in shearing sites across the country, many of which are located in flooded areas.
Lack of proper shelter, drainage and sanitation, these camps “leave families acutely vulnerable to storms,” said UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric.
The UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) cooperates with national authorities and humanitarian partners to prepare for the hurricane season. Ongoing efforts include contingency planning, mapping areas with high risk-icing displacement sites and strengthening early warning systems.
However, humanitarian access remains limited and readiness is severely hindered by the lack of preset supplies throughout the country.
This is a “direct consequence of underfunding,” Mr. Dujarric and added that “funding remains a major obstacle” to the UN emergency in Haiti.
