The United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) on Friday reported shortfall of more than $50 million to meet the continuing critical needs of Pakistani children who were hit by last year's devastating floods.
The agency said it continues to provide assistance to the victims of the floods that flooded almost one-fifth of the country, disrupted the lives of some 20 million people, claimed 2,000 lives and destroyed 1.6 million homes across the provinces of Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh.
Unicef said it had provided clean drinking water daily to 5.1 million people; vaccinated 11.7 million children for polio and 10.4 million children for measles; screened over two million children under five for malnutrition; established temporary learning centres for almost 300,000 children; supported child-friendly spaces for close to 400,000 children; and provided 761,000 children with school supplies to allow them to continue their education and recover more quickly from the disaster.
The impact of the floods will continue to be felt for years to come, especially by children who are the most vulnerable to the impacts of disaster, the agency said. When displaced children and their families returned to their areas of origin, they found homes, livelihoods, and infrastructure including health facilities and almost 10,000 schools damaged or destroyed.