Children under the age of 15, in countries in a state of war, are nearly three times more likely to die from illnesses associated with the lack of clean water than from violence, Unicef said today.
Μost vulnerable are the young children under the age of 5, who are twenty times more likely to die from illnesses than from violence, as it was stressed in the report that was published today, on World Water Day.
In particular, the Unicef report says that children die of diarrheal-related diseases such as cholera, when they do not have access to clean water due to the conflicts.
According to ANA-MPA, the report examined the impact of unsafe drinking-water on children’s health and the absence of sewers in 16 countries of conflict, including Myanmar, Afghanistan and Yemen.
It is underlined that “In these conflicts, and in other emergency situations, the supply of safe dinking-water, quickly and on a large scale, and the sewers, is a matter of life and death.”
Between 2014 and 2016, Unicef has recorded 85,000 deaths of children from diarrhea due to poor water quality and hygiene. In the same period, less than 31,000 deaths were due to conflicts, Unicef added, relying on World Health Organization figures.
Unicef, however, also mentions that are some exceptions too.
