Statement by Anthony Lake, UNICEF Executive Director, on children affected by the violence in Rakhine, Myanmar

NEW YORK, 5 September 2017 – “More than 125,000 Rohingya refugees have fled across the border from Rakhine State, Myanmar, into Bangladesh since 25 August, as many as 80 per cent of them are women and children. Many more children in need of support and protection remain in the areas of northern Rakhine State that have been wracked by violence.

“In Bangladesh, UNICEF is scaling up its response to provide refugee children with protection, nutrition, health, water and sanitation support.

“In Myanmar, UNICEF does not at present have access to the affected areas in northern Rakhine State. We are unable to reach the 28,000 children to whom we were previously providing psychosocial care or the more than 4,000 children who were treated for malnutrition in Buthidaung and Maungdaw. Our clean water and sanitation work has been suspended, as have school repairs that were under way.

“Children on both sides of the border need urgent help and protection.”

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Unicef is the world’s leading organisation for children, promoting the rights and wellbeing of every child, in everything we do. Together with our partners, we work in 190 countries and territories to translate that commitment into practical action, focusing special effort on reaching the most vulnerable and excluded children, to the benefit of all children, everywhere.
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