Armed men attacked a Catholic boarding school in northwestern region of Nigeria and abducted several schoolchildren and staff early Friday. It’s the latest in a spate of abductions in Africa’s most populous country and came just days after 25 schoolgirls were kidnapped in a neighboring state. The latest abduction comes as the country is facing scrutiny…
More than 19 per cent of children worldwide live in extreme poverty, surviving on under $3 a day, according to a new UNICEF report. Nearly 90 per cent of those children are in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, but even in high-income countries, 23 per cent live with far less income than their peers. “It…
Copenhagen — At the World Conference on Lung Health this week, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) released data from our operational research highlighting that using the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended treatment decision algorithms for diagnosing tuberculosis (TB) in children can nearly double the number of children who can be initiated on lifesaving TB treatment. The…
In the last 10 years or so, social media has largely evolved into a “digital playground”, with children dominating the space through consumption, creation, and sharing. While it may be uplifting to see children with agency taking up space, they often navigate the “digital playground” without protection, literacy, or power. They are not just exposed…
Children in many countries are growing up surrounded by violence. It may happen at home, in their neighbourhoods, or both. Some children are directly harmed, while others witness violence between caregivers or in their communities. Either way, the impact can be profound. Evidence shows that the relationship between violence exposure and poor mental health can…
Children and young adults are very much involved in campaigning against the climate change that older generations have caused. The global youth climate justice movement uses protests, strikes and court cases to block fossil fuel expansion. But do they have any say in what their governments do to address climate change, or a voice at…
Accra, Ghana — Foundational learning, the ability to read, write, and do basic math, is the bedrock of every child’s education. This is not just an educational failure, but also a development emergency. In Africa specifically, challenges are more pronounced. Too many students are still missing this crucial start. The challenge now is how to…
Study finds that rates soar to 90 percent in some regions as humanitarian crises compound childhood exploitation. Nearly two-thirds of South Sudanese children are engaged in the worst forms of child labour, with rates reaching as high as 90 percent in the hardest-hit regions, according to a government study released with the charity Save the…
A shipwreck off Tunisia that claimed the lives of at least 40 African migrants has once again exposed the lethal risks of irregular sea crossings on routes to Europe, the UN migration agency said on Thursday. The tragedy came amid concerns that worsening conditions for refugees and asylum-seekers in North Africa are pushing more families…
New York — Africa’s health agency has called for urgent action on sickle cell disease, warning that most of the 300,000 babies born with the condition each year on the continent die before their fifth birthday, despite cheap and effective treatments. “Sickle cell disease has silently devastated families across Africa for generations,” said H.E. Dr….
