KOICA and UNICEF join hands to support the strengthening of climate-resilient social services in Asia and Africa
Staff Writer
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) inked a landmark US$39 million climate grant today to help facilitate the delivery of climate-smart social services in the East Asia Pacific Region and the Eastern and Southern Africa Region.
This three-year partnership will help to strengthen the resilience of child-critical social services and empower children as agents of change. The programme aims to develop climate-smart and gender-responsive social services for children so that they are better protected from the climate crisis.
“UNICEF is grateful to the Government and the people of the Republic of Korea for their support for children on the frontlines of the climate crisis,” said Catherine Russell, UNICEF Executive Director. “KOICA’s climate funding will help to build community resilience and ensure that children have access to essential services and supplies – like healthcare, education, water and food – even when climate-related disasters strike.”
Specifically, the partnership will strengthen climate-smart social services in Asia (Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Timor-Leste) and Africa (Comoros and Zimbabwe). These countries were selected based on KOICA’s dual priorities of supporting fragile and/or conflict countries and aligning with the Korean government’s commitment to addressing the interlinkages among the humanitarian, development, and peace interventions.
“KOICA’s climate grant will help UNICEF strengthen the climate resilience of essential service systems to protect children and communities, as the selected regions in Asia and Africa are among the most disaster-prone and vulnerable in the world,” noted Jungmee Sohn, KOICA Vice President. “The Government of the Republic of Korea under its vision of a Global Pivotal State is committed to leading the world on a sustainable path, pro-actively tackling the climate and environmental crisis head-on.”
In the East Asia and Pacific Region, children born today will experience an estimated six times more climate-related disasters than their grandparents. The region is currently home to the highest proportion of children facing three, four, or even five types of overlapping shocks, stresses, and hazards linked to climate change and a degraded environment.
Changing climatic conditions in the Eastern and Southern Africa Region have compounded environmental degradation and contributed to increased displacement and migration, with some 86 million internal climate migrants recorded, further reducing access to basic social services, increasing gender inequality, and deteriorating livelihoods and food security.
“The world is at a crossroads. We can head down a path that threatens to reverse the tremendous gains in child development, survival and well-being, or we can seize the moment, strengthen our commitment and mobilise our collective will to create a healthy, sustainable world fit for children now and for generations to come. This partnership is a major step in the right direction,” said George Laryea-Adjei, UNICEF Director of Programme Group Leadership Team.
The fund represents the single largest grant received from the Korean Government. The total grant is $39 million, with $29 million allocated to the East Asia and Pacific region and $10 million to the Eastern and Southern Africa region.
[1] Over the tipping point | UNICEF East Asia and Pacific.
[2] Children Displaced in a Changing Climate.
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