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Add to Preferred SourcesUNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Orlando Bloom visited Mozambique this week, where 1.1 million children remain in urgent need of humanitarian assistance in the aftermath of tropical cyclones Idai and Kenneth.
The actor travelled to Beira, one of the areas worst-affected by Cyclone Idai, which killed over 600 people and destroyed nearly 240,000 homes when it made landfall in March.
“It’s remarkable to see children, who have been through so much, gain a sense of normality in the safe spaces set up by UNICEF, where they are free to sing, dance, play and just be children,” said Bloom. “These are children and young people with dreams, they want to be in school. But almost everyone I’ve met here has lost their classrooms, their books and crucial identification documents due to the cyclones. Without IDs they are unregistered, almost invisible and vulnerable to exploitation. It is heartbreaking.”
UNICEF is supporting families affected by the cyclones to either return home or relocate to safer places. UNICEF is also providing healthcare, nutrition, education, water and sanitation, and protection services. In the days following the storm, UNICEF and its partners restored water supplies to thousands of people in Beira and procured and administered 1 million doses of the cholera vaccine, thereby curbing a large cholera outbreak.
“Thousands of children and families in Mozambique have seen their lives upended by these devastating cyclones and it’s going to be a long road back,” said UNICEF Mozambique Representative, Marcoluigi Corsi. “We’re working on the ground with our partners to help get children and their families back on their feet by providing support in healthcare, nutrition, education and protection. As part of the recovery effort, we’re also trying to help affected communities become more resilient to future weather-related events that could happen more often because of climate change.”
UNICEF has launched an appeal for US$122 million to support its humanitarian response for children and families devastated by the storm and its aftermath in Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi.
Original source: UNICEF
Published on 30 May 2019