Attachments
Highlights
- Latin America and the Caribbean is the second most disaster-prone region in the world. Climate change is causing more intense and frequent weather events in the region.
- The El Niño phenomenon, which prolonged a pre-existing drought especially in Central America, transitioned into La Niña, which increased the risk of severe tropical cyclones in the Caribbean basin.
- Poverty makes families more vulnerable to new shocks. Multidimensional poverty, political instability, and limited humanitarian access slow down humanitarian response. Over 33 million people live in multidimensional poverty across the region, disproportionally affecting children in the vulnerable communities in rural areas.
- UNICEF has made progress to strengthen emergency preparedness and response capacities at community, country and regional levels, leveraging its network of partners. Children’s most urgent needs include access to health, nutrition, water, sanitation and hygiene, protection, and education services.
- One-third of UNICEF’s appeal in 2024 remains unfunded. Timely and flexible funding is crucial in providing immediate relief for children and their families, particularly with the onset of climate-related humanitarian situations.
Situation Overview & Humanitarian Needs
The Latin America and the Caribbean remains the second most disaster-prone region in the world.
Three out of ten people in the region have directly experienced the effects of disasters within their communities.
The increasing number of extreme weather events and climate related threats put children’s rights at risk. It is estimated that 1,050 children, mostly in vulnerable communities, were displaced each day due to weather-related disasters, with Cuba and Honduras among the 10 countries with the most child displacements triggered by tropical storms. iv Additionally, 27.5 million children already live in areas exposed to high or very high-water scarcity. v During the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, up to seven major hurricanes (Category 3 or higher) have been forecasted: an increase of 60 per cent compared to the 30-year average. vi In terms of climatic variability, the first part of 2024 was characterized by the El Niño phenomenon (dry climate), which prolonged pre-existing droughts in the LAC (especially in Central America and areas of South America). This was followed by a transition towards the La Niña phenomenon (humid climate), which dramatically increased the risk of tropical cyclones, affecting especially vulnerable children and families.
Latest estimations show that 33 million people live in multidimensional poverty across the region, disproportionally affecting children in the vulnerable communities in rural areas. Poverty makes families more vulnerable to new shocks, including the impact of natural disasters. Over the past months, the humanitarian access also deteriorated in Honduras and Mexico because of insecurity and climate hazards (Hurricane Otis). vii Hurricanes, wildfires and droughts not only have immediate effects on children’s survival, health, education or child and social protection, but also have devastated consequences for children’s wellbeing. Given the region’s vulnerability to a growing number of crises, UNICEF is working on strengthening national preparedness to ensure that countries can better respond to and recover from external shocks. UNICEF continues to support the national authorities across the region to specifically and systematically address children’s humanitarian needs caused by disasters and shocks, including those induced by climate change.