With conflict and natural disasters on the rise, lack of access to water and sanitation is becoming an increasing threat to children’s well-being, according to UNICEF. Around the world, 420 million children living in crisis do not have basic sanitation, and 210 million lack access to safe drinking water, the organization reported on Tuesday. UNICEF’s latest report, “Water Under Fire,” seeks to advance rights to water and sanitation for all while moving toward sustainable development and peace. The report maps out how water, sanitation, and hygiene services can be planned, financed, and executed to protect children in conflict-affected areas. “There has never been a more urgent time to safeguard the right to water and sanitation for every child,” UNICEF Associate Director for Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Kelly Ann Naylor said in a press release. Pictured here, internally displaced persons (IDPs) collect water as a sandstorm approaches in the Abs IDP settlement in the Hajjah Governorate of Yemen, in May 2017. Read more about the report and learn how to take action to ensure that world leaders prioritize access to clean water and sanitation at the link. (📷: © Giles Clarke for UNOCHA/UNICEF)
