Attachments
Appeal highlights
-
Approximately 80 million people, including more than 35 million children, are projected to need humanitarian assistance in South Asia in 2024 due to sudden-onset, cyclical and protracted emergencies, including natural disasters, disease outbreaks and human-caused crises.
-
UNICEF will support life-saving humanitarian interventions through multisectoral responses that encompass health, nutrition, education, WASH, child protection and shock-responsive social protection. These intervention areas will be prioritized to alleviate the suffering of crisis-affected children and families. Regional surge support to countries will be provided when required.
-
UNICEF will support preparedness and proactive investments in country system strengthening in line with the regional disaster risk reduction strategy by using a multi-hazard focus, emphasizing child-centred disaster risk reduction and anticipatory action.
-
UNICEF requires $37.7 million to support humanitarian action throughout the region. This includes $25.3 million to address the humanitarian needs of 5.8 million people in Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka and $12.4 million for the South Asia Regional Office to support preparedness for recurrent emergencies, response to emerging crises and technical support for cross-cutting issues.
HUMANITARIAN SITUATION
South Asia is home to more than 625 million children, many of whom are at risk of exposure to sudden-onset and protracted emergencies including floods, cyclones, earthquakes, droughts and public health emergencies, as well as economic crises, political turmoil and malnutrition. In 2023, more than 55 million children in South Asia required humanitarian assistance.
These emergencies do not respect boundaries and often requiring cross-border, multisectoral responses.
Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan continue to face significant humanitarian crises. The situation in Afghanistan is protracted and complex, driven by political and economic crises, natural disasters and disease outbreaks. Bangladesh faces multiple natural disasters each year while also hosting nearly 1 million Rohingya refugees in Cox’s Bazar and Bhasan Char, individuals who require sustained humanitarian support. Pakistan is grappling with various humanitarian challenges, including extreme flooding and drought, high malnutrition and the continued hosting of 3.7 million Afghan nationals.
The remaining countries in the region also face natural hazards that frequently lead to associated humanitarian needs. In India, climate change and environmental degradation are leading to unprecedented disasters; approximately 6 million children are affected by weather- and climate-related calamities every year.
In Nepal, more than 500 such incidents occur every year, and the country, which sits in one of the world's most seismically active zones, is also prone to megaearthquakes. In Sri Lanka, floods and droughts are impacting the ability of people who are already vulnerable to recover following the economic crisis there. While there are no active emergencies in Bhutan and Maldives, Maldives faces risks of rising sea levels and associated inundation, while Bhutan, like Nepal, is in one of the most seismically active zones of the Himalayan belt and is at risk for a major earthquake.
The increasing frequency and intensity of disasters pose critical threats to the well-being of 17.7 million people, including 6.5 million children, in Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka