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Shortage of supplies in Nepal threatens 3 mln children with death or disease: UNICEF

Xinhua, December 1, 2015 Adjust font size:

The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) on Monday warned that more than 3 million children under the age of five in Nepal are at risk of death or disease this winter due to a severe shortage of fuel, food, medicines and vaccines.

Over the past 10 weeks, vital imports of essential commodities have been severely restricted at Nepal's southern border due to unrest over the country's new constitution.

The Nepalese government's regional medical stores have already run out of vaccines against tuberculosis, while stocks of other vaccines and antibiotics are critically low.

UNICEF cautioned that children still recovering from two major earthquakes in April and May could be the worst hit.

Earlier this month, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed his growing concern over the blocking of essential supplies on the Nepal-India border, and called on all sides to lift these restrictions without further delay and underlines Nepal's right of free transit.

More than 200,000 families affected by the tremors are still living in temporary shelters, at an altitude above 1,500 metres where weather conditions will be the harshest this winter.

Fears are also growing that the rising dependence on firewood because of the fuel crisis is increasing indoor pollution, which in turn could lead to a spike in cases of pneumonia.

Last year more than 800,000 children under five suffered from the condition in Nepal and around 5,000 died, UNICEF said.

The 125,000 newborns expected in Nepal in the next two months are also at particular risk. Ambulance services across the country have been hit by the fuel shortage, resulting in a drop in births in hospitals and health centres.

"The plight that children and their families are facing in the country has been worsening by the day and will deteriorate further in the winter months," said UNICEF Regional Director of UNICEF for South Asia Karin Hulshof.

"Children need to be protected from disease, cold and hunger. UNICEF urges all sides to address the restrictions on essential imports of supplies to Nepal. There is no time to lose." Enditem