The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) on Monday said that nearly one-third of Nigerian children lack access to enough water.
In a statement marking World Water Day, UNICEF said more than 1.42 billion people including 450 million children are living in areas of high or extremely high water vulnerability in the world.
“The world’s water crisis is not coming – it is here, and children are its biggest victims,” said Peter Hawkins, UNICEF Representative in Nigeria.
“When wells dry up, children are the ones missing school to fetch water. When droughts diminish food supplies, children suffer from malnutrition and stunting. When floods hit, children fall ill from waterborne illnesses. And when water is not available in Nigerian communities, children cannot wash their hands to fight off diseases.”
According to UNICEF, “the figures in Nigeria are particularly worrying, with 26.5 million Nigerian children experiencing high or extremely high water vulnerability – or 29 percent of Nigerian children.”
