Children in Need
5.9 million children die each year - most in the world’s poorest communities and from preventable diseases. Children are impacted by war, poverty, and violence with the UNHCR estimating, 117.2 million people will be forcibly displaced or stateless in 2023.
Solving child poverty and a refugee crisis isn’t something that can happen without outside support. It’s important to invest in the future of children and prevent future generations from following similar cycles that are hard to break out of.
What is Children in Need?
Children make up less than one-third of the global population, but they comprise half of all refugees under the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
Children are impacted by war, poverty, and violence and need outside support in order to break free from the constraints that prevent development into a healthy adulthood.
There are several factors that can contribute to child poverty. These factors include:
Disability
Children from larger families
Those who live in remote areas
One parent households
The impact of child poverty can last a lifetime with life-long consequences surrounding health care and education. To break the cycle of child poverty, it’s important to acknowledge how we can help and support both children living in poverty and child refugees through volunteering, donations and supporting causes.
How are children currently affected?
Every child deserves the right to a standard of living that does not impact their physical or mental health. Children are constantly developing and poverty and conflict are both significant disruptions to a child, who often have little to no control over the situation.
Children caught up in conflict in their own countries are at risk. As the Israeli-Palestinian conflict continues to unfold, the well-being of children in Gaza is worsening as deaths continue to rise. Israeli forces, poverty, settler violence, unemployment, and the destruction of homes are all factors that are contributing to a crisis among children. At the time of writing, one Palestinian child every 15 minutes is killed in Gaza by Israeli forces.
Children who live in war-affected countries are more likely to experience severe loss which can lead to post-traumatic stress disorder and other psychological suffering, and those who are indirectly affected by war often become fatally ill. 10,200 children have lost their lives in the past 7 years of conflict in Yemen, a figure that UNICEF believes to be much higher. Almost 400 children were killed or injured in the first two months of the conflict in Ukraine. Based on UN data, Save the Children estimates that 1 child has been killed or maimed every 5 hours over the last 20 years due to war.
Children are highly vulnerable in conflict - lack of clean water, food, and protection from violence - causes a significant strain on mental and physical health. The DCI notes that the lack of water and facilities in Gaza has previously resulted in children suffering from diseases including the flu and typhoid fever.
What can you do to help?
There are ways you can help end child poverty and here at OnHand, we have provided missions and pledges to get involved this festive period.
All of the missions and pledges are easy to find on the OnHand app, so check them out this Christmas period and do good to feel good:
🎄Make festive cards for Cards for Bravery as a team or as an individual
The one thing better than supporting children in need is supporting the cause as a team. This festive period you and others can explore your creative side by designing a festive card for Card for Bravery, which brightens the days of hospitalised and seriously ill children.
🎁 Set up a community shoebox donation
Shoebox donation is a popular way to do good during the festive season. A simple shoebox filled with items for children will not only have a huge impact but also bring joy to a child in need.
🧒 Become a mentor for a child refugee
Mentoring a child refugee is a great way to get involved in supporting child refugees and breaking the cycle that impacts their education for generations. Not only is it an insightful experience for you, it will provide a child with an opportunity for education.
✍️ Write letters to refugees
Words of support and comfort are something simple that we can all do that will have a significant impact on a refugee child. It’s a way to send hope and love to those who are struggling and can often feel alone, it’s important they know in their darkest times they are not alone.
💙 Start your youth mentoring journey helping underrepresented children
Mentoring underrepresented children is highly rewarding and a great way to support those who have been given fewer opportunities than others.
Not signed up to OnHand? We would love to chat! Book a demo today: https://www.beonhand.co.uk/book-a-demo
