UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell travelled to China this week, including the autonomous region of Ningxia, to see first-hand UNICEF’s work for vulnerable children and to learn more about the impact of climate change on the lives of children.
“China has made impressive gains addressing child and maternal mortality, lifting millions of children and families out of poverty, and driving progress on the Sustainable Development Goals, including universal access to primary education and preventing mother-to-child transmission of HIV,” said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell. “China can serve as a role model in reaching global development goals, but challenges remain. UNICEF is committed to continuing our work with the Government of China to help all children realize their full potential, especially the most marginalized.”
China is home to the second largest child population in the world with nearly 300 million children. Despite impressive gains, gaps remain including for over 130 million children who are either migrants or left behind in rural communities as parents move to the cities for work. Meanwhile, around 96 per cent of children in China are exposed to high risks of climate and environmental shocks such as drought, floods, typhoons, heatwaves and air pollution.
In Beijing, Russell met children who are participating in the ‘China Youth, Climate Action’ campaign, led by UNICEF and supported by partners including the Government, private sector, schools and civil society organisations. The campaign, which will be exhibited at COP29 next month in Azerbaijan, helps equip children and youth with knowledge on climate change and green skills, and encourages them to develop solutions for climate action.
“Children are the most vulnerable to climate change, but the least responsible for it,” said Russell. “Around the world, UNICEF is seeing the profound impact of climate change on children’s development, health, nutrition and education. We must put children’s needs and voices at the centre. I appreciate China’s efforts in giving children a seat at the table.”
Russell also travelled to Ningxia where UNICEF is supporting nutrition, early childhood development, and child protection interventions. She joined health workers who provide home visits and counselling to parents and caregivers on how to feed, play and communicate with their young children. Across China, hundreds of thousands of community health workers are taking part in this UNICEF-supported programme.
During a visit to a maternity ward at Yongning Renmin Hospital, Russell saw how mothers and newborn babies benefit from a UNICEF-supported programme to improve newborn health.
In Beijing, Russell had a series of high-level engagements with government officials and other UNICEF partners, including the State Council; the Ministry of Commerce; the Ministry of Civil Affairs; the China International Development Cooperation Agency; and the China Meteorological Administration.
Russell confirmed UNICEF’s commitment to strengthen the partnership with the Government of China and partners to promote the rights of children in China and around the world, including delivering on the Sustainable Development Goals and responding to humanitarian crises.
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