At least 5 million children have lost a parent or caregiver due to #COVID19 since March 2020, updated figures suggest. The authors urge actions to prioritise affected children, incl. economic strengthening, enhanced community and family support, and education.

Nearly six children every minute on average lost at least one parent or guardian to COVID-19 and now face a heightened risk of violence, exploitation and abuse, as well as the danger of being put into institutional care, said Save the Children. A new modelling study published in The Lancet today found an estimated 5.2 million children lost at least one caregiver to COVID-19 in the first 20 months of the pandemic, with Peru having the highest rate of orphanhood cases per capita with eight out of every 1,000 children affected followed by South Africa. 

An estimated 6.7 million children have suffered from COVID-19-associated orphanhood and caregiver death in the past two years (as of January 15, 2022). This number is rapidly growing: every 6 seconds another child loses a parent or caregiver. This report, issued by dozens of leading international NGOs, outlines the magnitude of loss globally due to COVID-19 and presents tangible steps that the U.S. government can take to support children and families.

The aim of this report is to fill a knowledge gap by examining the points of interaction between climate change impacts and the amount, distribution, and conditions of unpaid care work. We focus on care workers rather than those who are cared for, while stressing the relational nature of care and acknowledging
that carers too require care.

The COVID-19 pandemic had widespread effects, including enhanced psychosocial stressors and stay-at-home orders which may be associated with higher rates of child abuse. The researchers aimed to evaluate rates of child abuse, neglect, and inadequate supervision during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The goal of the summit was to lead lasting change in the lives of millions of people with disabilities. To succeed, it is crucial that governments, international organizations, civil society and private business commit themselves to increased efforts to promote inclusion and rights-based development.

This side event to the 2022 Global Disability Summit, organized by major global disability right groups gathered around the Global Coalition on Deinstitutionalization, aims to overcome such gap and bring attention to the important UN process of development of the Guildelines on Deinstitutionalization.

This online event is a side panel event of the 60th Session of UN Commission for Social Development.

The Global Disability Summit offers a concrete mechanism for collecting new, ambitious, and widespread commitments which are critical to achieving real change for persons with disabilities. 

The Opportunity: