Off the wire
• Greece sees 2,100 pct rise in refugee, migrant sea arrivals in Jan.: IOM  • Police smashes illegal organization jeopardizing China's national security  • Feature: Agatha Christie's Mousetrap will never make big screen: producer  • South China Sea projects to provide myriad civic benefits: Chinese ambassador  • China Voice: Resilient, sustainable growth expected for China  • Death toll of French killed in Ouagadougou attack climbs to four: Hollande  • Chinese unmanned helicopter completes South Pole flight  • China to launch full preservation of plant species  • Schalke's Benedikt Hoewedes remains sidelined longer than expected  • UN chief urges end to conflict in Yemen  
You are here: 　 Home

UNICEF voices concern over health of children on the move

Xinhua, January 19, 2016 Adjust font size:

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) warned on Tuesday that harsh winter conditions in South Eastern Europe pose a risk to the health of children who are on the move as many lack adequate clothing and access to age-appropriate nutrition.

According to UNICEF, sub-zero temperatures and snowy conditions are exacerbating the children's poor health, a worrying development given that the proportion of children amongst refugees and migrants, now standing at over 33 percent, has continued to rise.

Lack of shelter and inadequate heating in some reception centers as well as buses and trains have further compounded the plight experienced by many children transiting in Greece, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia and Croatia.

UNICEF's Special Coordinator for the Refugee and Migrant Crisis in Europe Marie-Pierre Poirier explained in a statement that children are particularly vulnerable to respiratory infections, digestive problems and diarrhoea.

She also warned that non-controlled use of baby formula could seriously affect babies' health.

Children on the move are also physically exhausted, scared, distressed and often in need of medical assistance, said UNICEF, adding that cross-border information-sharing and follow-up on the most vulnerable children is insufficient, mainly due to the speed at which populations are moving.

Official figures reveal that 253,700 out of the more than 1 million refugees and migrants who crossed the Mediterranean Sea last year were children. Enditem