National Sep 3, 2020
Mental health of Japanese kids nearly worst among rich nations, UNICEF says
Bullying at school and difficulties at home are behind the poor showing, the U.N. Children's Fund found.
Asia Pacific / Science & Health Apr 29, 2020
Children in South Asia at risk as coronavirus disrupts immunization drive
Disruptions to immunization programs across South Asia due to the coronavirus pandemic are upending attempts to vaccinate millions of children against deadly diseases, UNICEF has warned. The pandemic has interrupted vaccine supply chains and left families fearful of attending clinics, UNICEF said, creating another looming ...
World / Social Issues Feb 7, 2020
At current rate, female genital mutilation will take centuries to eradicate, U.N. says
Female genital mutilation (FGM) will take centuries to eradicate despite world leaders promising to end the practice by 2030, according to United Nations data released on Thursday. FGM remains as common today as 30 years ago in Somalia, Mali, Gambia, Guinea Bissau, Chad and Senegal, ...
National / Science & Health Jun 29, 2019
Japanese envoy and UNICEF press for childhood vaccinations amid rise in misinformation
Japan's envoy to the United Nations joined forces with the head of UNICEF on Friday to push the world to make sure as many children as possible are vaccinated against potentially fatal diseases amid a rise in misinformation about immunization programs. "Ensuring and scaling up ...
World / Social Issues Jun 14, 2019
Tripoli's children struggle to study as war reaches the capital
For 13-year-old Taha Aboud, who dreams of becoming an engineer, war in Libya's capital Tripoli has meant his family fleeing their home and him missing studies as they searched for a new school. "I'm happy to be back at school. I hope to become a ...
National / Social Issues Jun 13, 2019
Japan offers most paid leave for fathers worldwide but few take it, UNICEF report finds
Japan leads the world in offering paid leave for fathers, but few take advantage of it, according to a new report by UNICEF based on legal entitlements from 2016. The report — called "Are the world's richest countries family-friendly?" — looks at the globe's most ...
Soccer Jun 7, 2019
Ex-Japan captain Makoto Hasebe visits Rohingya refugee camp in Bangladesh
Soccer player Makoto Hasebe, who serves as Japan's national UNICEF goodwill ambassador, visited a Muslim Rohingya refugee camp in southern Bangladesh on Thursday to call greater attention to the refugees' plight. At a press briefing in Dhaka following his visit, the Eintracht Frankfurt midfielder lamented ...
World / Science & Health Mar 4, 2019
Ebola treatment center in Congo reopens after attack, but MSF yet to return
An Ebola treatment center at the epicenter of the current outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo has resumed operations after it was closed in response to an attack last week, the Congolese health ministry said on Sunday. The facility in the city of Butembo ...
Asia Pacific / Social Issues Aug 23, 2018
U.N. warns of 'lost generation' of Rohingya children as half a million languish in refugee camps
The United Nations warned on Thursday of what it described as a lost generation of Muslim Rohingya children, with half a million in refugee camps in Bangladesh facing dangers including disease and floods and those still in Myanmar lacking access to proper education. One year ...
Business Jul 26, 2018
UNICEF and Lixil join hands to improve toilet access for children
by Chisato Tanaka
UNICEF and major water and housing equipment maker Lixil Corp. announced on Thursday that they forged a partnership to address sanitation problems that put hundreds of children in danger every day. A joint agreement entitled "Make a splash! Toilets for Everyone!" aims to achieve one ...
World / Social Issues Oct 24, 2017
Starving Rohingya girls and women in refugee camps seen forced to engage in clandestine prostitution
As Rohingya women struggle to access even the very basics such as food and water in Bangladesh's overcrowded camps, a flourishing sex trade offers cash in times of desperation. Four women entered the clean-swept mud hut, took off their black shawls and sat cross-legged on ...
National / Social Issues Jun 15, 2017
UNICEF child poverty study places Japan 32nd among 41 countries
Japan ranks 32nd among 41 developed countries in addressing income inequality involving families with children while countries like Norway and Finland have done exceptionally well, according to a report released Thursday by the United Nations Children's Fund. Assessed on the reduction in the number of ...