Press releases

Unicef UK confirms launch of independent review

Unicef UK statement on 8 October 2020

View Press Release

UN agencies launch “Learning is Back”, a song on return to learning in the Middle East and North Africa

8 October 2020 - UN Agencies*[1] in the region unveiled today “Rej’et El Sineh” [‘Learning is Back’], a song to encourage the return to learning for all children and youth across the region.

View Press Release

One stillbirth occurs every 16 seconds, according to first ever joint UN estimates

8 October 2020– Almost 2 million babies are stillborn every year – or 1 every 16 seconds – according to the first ever joint stillbirth* estimates released by UNICEF, WHO, the World Bank Group and the Population Division of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs.

View Press Release

Only 1 in 3 countries have re-opened school in West and Central Africa

7 October 2020 – UNICEF calls on Ministries of Education and Finance today to prioritize education in their coronavirus recovery plans to reduce the negative impact of the COVID-19 crisis on children and national economies.

View Press Release

Unrelenting violence continues to impact children in Ituri, eastern DRC

6 October 2020 – UNICEF continues to be deeply concerned about thousands of children at risk amid unrelenting violence in Ituri, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

View Press Release

UNICEF calls for the resumption of salary payments for schoolteachers in Yemen

5 October, 2020 – This World Teachers’ Day, UNICEF, together with the Global Partnership for Education, Education Cannot Wait and UNESCO, is calling for the resumption of salary payments for around half of the Yemeni teachers and school-based staff (estimated 160,000) who have not received regular salary payments since 2016.

View Press Release

UNICEF statement on allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

UNICEF is appalled that people who identify as UNICEF workers have reportedly committed abuse against vulnerable women in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

View Press Release
View Press Release

Statement by UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore on 30th anniversary of World Summit for Children

29 September 2020 – “The 30th anniversary of the first ever World Summit for Children is an opportunity to celebrate the huge gains of the past three decades but also a stark reminder of how Coronavirus could turn back the clock.

View Press Release

Conflict, climate crisis and coronavirus pose great threats to the health of women and children

Fragile gains made to advance women and children’s health are threatened by conflict, the climate crisis and COVID-19, according to a new report from Every Woman Every Child.

View Press Release

Statement from Unicef UK Board

UNICEF UK STATEMENT ON 24th SEPTEMBER 2020 The Board of Trustees of Unicef UK regrets to announce that Douglas Alexander has decided to resign as Chair with immediate effect. The…

View Press Release

As classrooms for half the world’s schoolchildren remain closed, UNICEF and EU urge countries to prioritise schools in re-opening plans

23 September 2020 – “As schools remain closed for half the world’s students due to the Coronavirus pandemic, we are issuing an S.O.S. message urging countries to prioritise schools in their re-opening plans.

View Press Release

Coronavirus pandemic: Countries urged to take stronger action to stop spread of harmful information

23 September 2020 – The World Health Organization (WHO) together with the UN, specialised agencies and partners today called on countries to develop and implement action plans to promote the timely dissemination of science-based information and prevent the spread of false information while respecting freedom of expression.

View Press Release

Resignation of Unicef UK Executive Director Sacha Deshmukh

Statement by Unicef UK on 23rd September 2020

View Press Release

UNICEF calls for schools to open in Eastern & Southern Africa

Tuesday, 22 September 2020 - UNICEF has called on governments, parents and teachers across Eastern and Southern Africa to urgently and safely re-open schools, as the costs of continued school closures escalate across Eastern and Southern Africa.

View Press Release

WHO and UNICEF recommit to accelerating health and well-being at all ages

19 September 2020 – The World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF have signed a new collaborative framework which will accelerate joint public health efforts that put the most marginalized and vulnerable populations first.

View Press Release

UNICEF statement on children affected by the Moria camp fire on Lesvos Island, Greece

11th September 2020 - UNICEF statement on children affeected by fire in Moria camp, Lesvos Island, Greece

View Press Release

Polio programme accelerates efforts to respond to new polio outbreaks in Sudan and Yemen

11 September 2020 - “The recent vaccine-derived polio outbreaks confirmed in Yemen and Sudan are consequences of increasingly low levels of immunity among children. Each outbreak has paralysed children in areas that have been extremely difficult if not impossible to reach with routine or supplementary polio vaccination for extended periods of time."

View Press Release

Return to learning a priority for children to catch-up on education in person or remotely in the Middle East and North Africa

9 September 2020 - As schools start to reopen, UNICEF works with partners on the safe return to learning and launches “Ready to Come Back: A Teacher Preparedness Training Package”.

View Press Release