Over the 4 past weeks, UNICEF has been able to send more than 50 tonnes of vital supplies to Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Sudan on board of a total of 8 EU Humanitarian Air Bridge flights.
The EU Humanitarian Air Bridge was set up in early May 2020 aiming to help countries respond to the challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic affecting the flow of humanitarian aid and workers, said a press release of the UNICEF.
The UNICEF cargo included vaccines, medical equipment and other health supplies to help children and families, and to support the countries to keep up essential health services during the pandemic.
In mid-March, commercial flight capacity decreased by up to 80 per cent, with considerable rises in freight costs, making it increasingly difficult to ship critical supplies to countries, it added.
A recent Lancet study indicated that disruptions in medical supply chains and decline in the use of health services due to the pandemic could lead to an alarming increase in child and maternal deaths across 118 countries.
Last week, vital health supplies arrived in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, with cargo including equipment to fight COVID-19 in country, as well as vital nutrition supplies, added the release.
UNICEF works in more than 190 countries and territories for every child to build a better world.
Meanwhile, UNICEF said that the number of children suffering from malnutrition in Yemen may rise to 2.4 million by the end of the year.
UNICEF has also warned that due to the severe shortage in humanitarian aid funding over 20 per cent would increase in the number of malnourished children under the age of five.
UNICEF is seeking $461 million for its humanitarian operations, only 39 per cent of which is currently funded, and $53 million to support prevention against COVID-19, only ten per cent of which is funded.
UNICEF also said that some 7.8 million children are no longer in school.
