The charity has launched the largest ever campaign in its 73-year history.
More than 6,000 children around the world could die every day as health systems struggle under the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, Unicef has said.
The charity estimates that a “worst-case” scenario could see an additional 1.2 million under-five deaths could occur in the next six months due to reductions in routine health services and an increase in child wasting caused by severe food shortages.
Even in the most optimistic scenario, research suggests an additional 1,400 young children will die worldwide each day.
These projected deaths would be in addition to the 2.5 million children who already die before their fifth birthday every six months, threatening to reverse nearly a decade of progress on ending preventable child deaths.
The charity has now launched the largest ever campaign in its 73-year history to help tackle the worldwide impact of coronavirus.
“This pandemic is having far-reaching consequences for all of us, but it is undoubtedly the biggest and most urgent global crisis children have faced since World War Two,” said Unicef UK’s executive director Sacha Deshmukh.
“Children’s lives are being upended across the globe – their support systems ripped away, their borders closed, their educations lost, their food supply cut off. Even in the UK, children face the threat of a measles outbreak and school closures are putting vulnerable children at increased risk.”
Research has shown how coronavirus causes disruptions in medical supply chains and strains already-limited resources in countries with the weakest public health systems. Visits to health care centres are declining due to lockdowns, curfews and transport disruptions, and as communities remain fearful of infection.
The Unicef appeal - Save Generation Covid - will support ongoing efforts to tackle coronavirus globally by supplying vital medical equipment, working with communities, supporting health, education and social services for children, tackling misinformation and carrying out prevention campaigns.
Ewan McGregor, Unicef UK ambassador, helped launch the campaign this week. He said: “In all my sixteen years of being a Unicef UK Ambassador, there has never been such a far-reaching, global appeal that aims to help children and families around the world affected by the same single, unifying crisis.
“That thousands of children will die every day as a result of missing out on basic medical support is truly heart-breaking. Over the years, I have met children all over the world with Unicef in places with weaker health systems like Ethiopia, Malawi and India – and knowing their chances of dying have been dangerously increased due to the Coronavirus pandemic is a terrible situation. Please join Unicef in ensuring that we can save the Covid generation, and all children are able to survive this crisis and thrive long after it.”
