16,600 children lost parents to Ebola in Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leon - UNICEF

16,600 children lost parents to Ebola in Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leon - UNICEF

UNICEF says no fewer than 16,600 children are registered as having lost one or
both parents, or primary care-givers to Ebola in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone
so far.
It said less than three per cent of this population has had to be placed outside
family or community care.
This is contained in a statement issued by UNICEF’s Regional Director for West
and Central Africa, Mr Manuel Fontaine in New York on Friday.
``Since overcoming their initial fears and misconceptions about Ebola virus,
families have been showing incredible support, providing care and protection for
children whose parents have died.
``This shows the strength of kinship ties and the extraordinary resilience of
communities at a time of great hardship’’, added the statement.
UNICEF said as of mid-January, nearly 3,600 children had lost both parents to
Ebola virus in the three countries, while 16,600 were registered as having lost one
or both parents.
It stated that the disease also affected primary care-givers.
It said pointed out that UNICEF was helping to identify children without parents or
caregivers with the view to providing immediate care and protection to them.
It said the assistance would either be through extended family members,
community members or foster families.
In Guinea, for example, UNICEF said all 773 children who lost both parents have
been placed with their extended families.
It added that children and the families looking after them were regularly given
cash and material assistance.
Fontaine said UNICEF had helped in accessing schools for them and providing
counseling to support their emotional and psychological well-being.
The UNICEF said following up children who were in new families was an important
focus as they remained emotionally vulnerable.
It added that unaccompanied children who may have come into physical contact
with a person suffering from Ebola were provided with centre-based care while
under observation for 21 days maximum incubation period.
Across the three countries, UNICEF said the total number of such children to date
had been just over 250.
Out of this, it said over 90 per cent of them were taken into the care of extended
family members shortly after the quarantine period.
It added that UNICEF had also developed a network of Ebola survivors who have
been playing an important role in supporting affected children.
It said because they had built up a level of resistance to the disease, survivors
can interact with children who were under observation.
UNICEF added that identifying vulnerable children and providing services to them
had been one of the many challenges faced in responding to the Ebola crisis.
It quoted Fontaine as saying: ``as the Ebola-affected countries head towards
recovery, we should take the opportunity to improve child protection services for
all vulnerable children.
``We have a chance to address other forms of vulnerability that existed before the
Ebola crisis, such as child marriage, child labour, sexual violence and exploitation."