1.1 billion children exposed to climate threats – UNICEF report

Nearly half of the world’s children – or 1.1 billion – are exposed to at least three overlapping climate hazards, threatening their health, education, and survival, a new United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) report released on Tuesday, has said.

According to the report, almost every child in the world faces at least one climate hazard, while more than 4 million could face as many as six overlapping threats.

Christened ‘The Children’s Climate Risk Report 2026’,it uses the latest available data to map children’s exposure to the eight most frequent climate threats, including coastal floods, droughts, extreme heat, fires, heat waves, riverine floods, sand and dust storms, and tropical storms.

The report stated that drought, extreme heat, and heat waves were the most widespread combination of climate hazards, with over 296 million children living in areas exposed to all three conditions.

The second most common combination – drought, extreme heat, and tropical storms – leaves more than 115 million children worldwide exposed to these overlapping threats.

In addition to the eight most frequent climate hazards, the report analyses children’s exposure to air pollution and malaria; two risks that are highly sensitive to the effects of climate change.

Data shows that air pollution affects nearly every child globally, while one billion children are exposed to malaria, adding another layer of danger for children already facing multiple climate hazards.

And without urgent efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, climate hazards, according to the report, will grow more frequent and severe, placing even greater strain on government budgets and systems, threatening children’s well-being, the report warns.

To protect children’s rights from these threats, UNICEF is calling on governments, businesses and relevant actors to work towards the reduction ofemissions and take ambitious action to fulfil existing international commitments, grounded in the best available science, including the urgent phasing-out of fossil fuels and a just transition towards renewable energy.

With that, children can be protected through inclusive climate adaptation, disaster risk reduction, and responses to loss and damage that prioritise the resilience of social services, ensuring that children and child-critical services were included in the national sector strategies, disaster risk governance, preparedness and response plans. 

Moreover, the report also stated that it was important toempower children and young people to meaningfully participate in climate action by investing in climate education, knowledge and skills, and by strengthening the capacity of decision makers and experts to respect children’s rights to be heard.