
UN Report on the Impact of Covid-19 on Children
Sep 09, 2020
UN Report on the Impact of Covid-19 on Children
Q. Why is this in news?
A. UN Report on the Impact of Covid-19 on Children released recently says almost 24 million children could drop out or not have access to school next year due to the economic impact of Covid-19.
Q. What are few main findings of report?
A. It talks about impact of Covid-19 on children :
Impact:
The Covid-19 pandemic will impact the children all over the world in multiple ways:
- On Economic: An estimated 42-66 million children could fall into extreme poverty as a result of pandemic
- The economic loss might reach 16,000 USD of lost earnings over a student’s lifetime, translating over time into 10 trillion USD of lost earnings globally.
- On Learning: 188 countries have imposed countrywide school closures, affecting more than 1.5 billion children and youth.
- More than two-thirds of countries have introduced a national distance learning platform, but among low-income countries the share of distance learning is only 30%.
- Online learning is not accessible for poor children, children from remote and conflict areas and children with disabilities.
- A loss of learning by one-third (equivalent to a three-month school closure) during Grade 3 might result in 72% of students falling so far behind that by Grade 10 they will have dropped out or will not be able to learn anything in school.
- On Survival: Economic hardship experienced by families as a result of the global economic downturn could result in hundreds of thousands of additional child deaths in 2020,
- This will reverse the last 2 to 3 years of progress in reducing infant mortality within a single year.
- On Health: Rising malnutrition is expected as 368.5 million children across 143 countries rely on school meals for a reliable source of daily nutrition.
- On Safety: Lockdowns and shelter in place measures come with heightened risk of children witnessing or suffering violence and abuse.
- There is a reduced access to essential reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health interventions.
- Suspension of all polio vaccination campaigns worldwide and measles immunization campaigns in at least 23 countries will set back the decades-long effort to eliminate these diseases.
- The effects of physical distancing measures and movement restrictions on children’s mental health represent another cause for concern.
- Children’s reliance on online platforms for distance learning has also increased their risk of exposure to inappropriate content and online predators.
- Susceptibility to child marriage, early pregnancy and gender-based violence will also increase.
Q. Does it said anything about gender inequality?
A. Yes, According to it :
- The impact of Covid-19 is going to be more damaging for girls than boys, widening gender inequality.
- Earlier this year, the Global Education Monitoring Report, 2020 was released by UNESCO also highlighted that the Covid-19 had worsened the inequalities in education systems worldwide.