UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell’s remarks at the launch of UNICEF’s Humanitarian Action for Children appeal
As prepared for delivery

[/b"Excellencies, partners, friends and supporters of UNICEF, thank you for joining us today as we launch our Humanitarian Action for Children appeal for 2023.
[p"Earlier this year, I travelled to Ituri Province in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo – an area hard-hit by conflict and attacks on civilians. There, I visited a camp sheltering people who had been displaced by the violence.[/p][p"Among the 36,000 children seeking safety, was a 14-year-old boy named Blukwa. Several months before, Blukwa had narrowly escaped being killed in a massacre of civilians in a nearby village. During the attack, Blukwa witnessed the decapitation of his best friend – a horror so extreme that Blukwa wished he had died as well.[/p][p"When we met, Blukwa was confronted with an uncertain future – displaced from his home, deeply traumatized, and with limited access to adequate nutrition, care and essential services.[/p][p"No child should ever experience such tragedy, trauma and acute deprivation. But right now, there are more children in need of humanitarian assistance than at any other time since the Second World War. Across the globe, they are facing a confluence of crises – from violence and displacement to infectious disease outbreaks and soaring rates of malnutrition.[/p][p"Meanwhile, climate change is compounding the severity of these crises and unleashing new ones. Just this year, we have seen a wave of deadly climate-linked disasters, including catastrophic floods in Pakistan, historic drought in the Sahel and Horn of Africa, and blistering heat waves across parts of Europe, the Middle East and North America.[/p][p"And it is children who are bearing the brunt, with millions struggling to survive.[/p]The numbers are deeply troubling.
"More than 400 million children living in areas under conflict.
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[b]About UNICEF
UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. Across more than 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, to build a better world for everyone.
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