New Delhi : One of the few minor clearances of the coronavirus is that the risk of serious illness in children is relatively low. But this does not mean that death is not terrible.
In its new report, with the promise of a vaccine available soon, UNICEF also warned that the future of a whole generation is in danger. The United Nations Children’s Working Unit believes that the threat to children has increased, as the world is reeling from the economic decline caused by the epidemic.
The report, based on a survey conducted in 140 countries, draws a picture warning of three types of threats facing a generation. These threats include direct consequences of the epidemic, interruption of essential services and rising poverty and inequality.
UNICEF says that if the hindrance in all basic services including vaccination and health is not rectified, then about 2 million children may die in the next 12 months and an additional two lakh can be born right now.
The report also found that keeping the schools closed slowed down the spread of the virus, but could be harmful in the long run. Although higher education institutions have played a role in the community spread of the epidemic, data from studies in 191 countries included in the report showed that there is no consistent correlation between reopening of schools and the Covid-19 infection rate.
UNICEF warns that the younger generation may lose their capacity until the global community immediately changes its priorities. According to UNICEF, children and schools are not the main carriers of epidemic prevalence in all countries.
It would be harmful to keep the school closed for too long
According to UNICEF, by the time the first wave of the epidemic peaked, 90% of the world’s students (about 1.5 billion children) had their classes disrupted and 46.3 million children had access to remote learning (online classes).
The UNICEF report states that the longer the schools remain closed, the more children will suffer from extensive learning loss. This will have long-term negative effects, including future income and health.
60 crore children are currently affected by school closure
According to the report, around 60 crore children have been affected by the school closure till November. More and more governments have renewed the lockdown order in schools due to the spread of the virus.
In New York City itself, the entire public school system has been closed since Thursday and the same is being done in other cities. But UNICEF believes that such steps have not proved to be helpful in slowing the spread of the virus.
