99.5% of Vietnamese children face "climate shocks"
Children born in the East Asia and Pacific region face six times more risks related to climate disasters than their grandparents' generation.
Picture of pupils in Nam Cha, Nam Nhun district, Lai Chau province, were overcoming floods to go to school in 2018. Photo: Viet Hoang / VNA
Children in Vietnam, the Philippines and other countries in East Asia and the Pacific are facing increasing risks from disasters caused by climate change. A new UNICEF report titled "Over the Tipping Point" highlights the urgent need to invest in smart social policies and services adapt to climate and protect children.
Climate change affects not only children but adults as well, but Silvia Gaya, UNICEF's regional adviser on water, sanitation and hygiene for East Asia and the Pacific, says children are affected because they "have less capacity and resources to respond to the increasing frequency of shocks and stresses". For example, heat waves affect children more than adults because they are less able to regulate their body temperature, she notes.
According to the report, children in these regions face six times more risks related to climate disasters than their grandparents' generation. Over the past 50 years, the number of floods increased 11 times, storms increased 4 times, droughts increased 2.4 times and landslides increased 5 times. Many children and families are displaced and struggle to survive, with limited or no access to health care, education and clean water and sanitation.
Specifically, according to the latest analysis, based on the Children's Climate Risk Index (CCRI), more than 210 million children in East Asia and the Pacific are at high risk of being affected by cyclones; 140 million children are at high risk of dehydration; 120 million children are at high risk of being affected by coastal flooding; and 460 million children affected by air pollution.
Furthermore, children in the region are affected by a variety of climate shocks (or unpredictable weather events that compromise the sustainability of a community) and the environment, are stressed or danger.
In Vietnam, 99.5% of children (26.2 million children) face 3 or more types of climate shocks, compared with 89% in the region and 73% globally. In addition, 94.6% of Vietnamese children were affected by 4 or more types of climate shocks, which is 65% for children in the region and 37% for children globally.
The report notes that the 2020 floods in central Vietnam affected about 160,000 children, the disaster has led to an increased risk of water-borne diseases for children due to destroy water and sanitation facilities.