UN children’s fund appeals $2.6 billion for Mideast and North Africa

UNICEF on Tuesday appealed for $2.6 billion to meet the growing needs of children in the Middle East and North Africa.

These funds are intended to provide lifesaving assistance to more than 52.7 million children in need in the Middle East and North Africa in 2023.

“With nearly half of the countries in the region in crisis or experiencing the ripple effects of conflict and war, children remain the most affected and in dire need of assistance,” said Adele Khodr, Regional Director of UNICEF for the Middle East and North Africa, quoted in the press release on Tuesday.

“Year by year, a dire situation is getting worse, with many families becoming poorer as they face the impacts of multiple crises,” she added.

The region is experiencing conflicts, some of which are among the longest in the world. In Syria, a country facing nearly 12 years of war, more than 6.5 million children need assistance. In Yemen, a country hit by the worst humanitarian crisis on the planet, almost all the country's children depend on humanitarian aid, according to UNICEF.

The serious crisis in Lebanon and the instability in Sudan have resulted in millions of additional children living in critical conditions.

"If secured, these emergency funds will enable UNICEF to help children affected by conflict and humanitarian crises," the statement continued.

The funds raised will be used to help children in Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, the Palestinian territories, Sudan and Syria, as well as Syrian refugees in neighbouring countries and Yemen, according to the same source.