The United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) urged Western donors on Tuesday to put aside politics and back its health, nutrition and education projects in Zimbabwe, where nearly one in three children is stunted by malnutrition.
Only $2,6-million has been received towards an appeal of $13,8-million launched six months ago, leaving programmes ”grossly underfunded”, the agency said.
”The message we are trying to convey is that yes, there is a stand-off between the government of Zimbabwe and several parties inside and outside, but the children should not suffer,” said Roeland Monasch, Unicef deputy representative in Zimbabwe.
”… if you are concerned for whatever reason about channelling money through the government, as Unicef we are able to reach the children,” he told a news briefing after meeting officials from donor countries in Geneva.
Unicef programmes aim to provide vaccines against killer diseases, bed nets against malaria, school books as well as food and nutrition counselling directly through communities.
Recent studies show that 29,4% of children under five are stunted, the highest rate since 1988, according to Unicef.
The country is also one of the countries hardest hit by the HIV/Aids pandemic, with one in five adults carrying the virus. About one in four children have been orphaned by the disease.
”Zimbabwean people don’t understand why they’re living in a very difficult political and economic situation and yet through no fault of their own they’re being punished by the rest of the world who seem to be abandoning them,” said James Elder, Unicef spokesperson in Zimbabwe. — Reuters