Press Release
Half of all schools damaged or destroyed in India quake zone
UNICEF Estimates 5 Million Children Have Been Affected; Signs of
Trauma and Stress Emerging
Read other press releases
on the Indian Earthquake
5 February 2001: The United Nations Children's Fund said today that
as many as 5 million children under the age of 14 may have been impacted
in some way by the earthquake in the Indian state of Gujarat, including
nearly 2.5 million who have been severely impacted - children who have
lost family members, homes, schools, and their sense of security.
The most significant figure is that of severely impacted children.
UNICEF estimates that between 1.5 million
and 2.5 million children under 14 have been severely impacted. These
children lived in areas where the quake damaged or destroyed at least
60% of structures.
In addition, according to a UNICEF field assessment
and preliminary figures from the state government, some 15,000 primary
schools - half of the pre-quake total - have been damaged or destroyed
across Gujarat. Millions of children are affected by this loss of schools.
In the hard hit districts of Jamnagar, Kutch, Rajkot and Surendranagar,
more than 1,700 primary schools have been destroyed (55% of the total),
leaving approximately 317,000 students without classrooms.
"Children are very vulnerable in this situation," said Maria
Calivis, the head of UNICEF's India office. "They are vulnerable
to illness, to malnutrition and to trauma, and the safe havens of their
daily lives - their homes and schools - have been taken away from them."
Calivis, who returned to Delhi Monday after a three-day tour through
the earthquake zone, said getting children back into an educational
setting was crucial both to their emotional health and their long-term
development. "Both children and teachers have suffered," Calivis
said. "Getting back into classrooms - even in tents - will help
restore normalcy for everyone. We mustn't wait," she said.
UNICEF's relief program for the next 12 weeks
now exceeds $12 million, with an emphasis on education and trauma counselling
in addition to family survival, restoration of basic health services,
and provision of safe water.
On Monday, the first of 35 UNICEF water tankers
began arriving in the worst affected areas to deliver safe water to
the drought and quake-stricken region.
In addition to advocating with state officials for the quick establishment
of makeshift classrooms, UNICEF will be providing large tents that can
be used as schools, health centres, and "child-friendly spaces"
- places where children can play in a safe environment while their mothers
access basic health and social services. The child-friendly space concept
was successfully spearheaded by UNICEF in Kosovo and was a crucial part
of the quake-recovery effort in Turkey in 1999.
UNICEF will also be providing "school kits" containing teaching
and learning supplies, and will train teachers so they can recognize
and address trauma in children. UNICEF is already in advanced discussions
with government counterparts and NGO partners on providing training
programs in the hardest hit areas.
"We cannot overstate the value of a school in helping a community
to recover," Calivis observed. "The first spaces cleared by
the bulldozers should be set aside for classrooms."
Note: UNICEF's estimates of children impacted by the 26 January quake
are based on damage assessment data and population statistics and patterns.
Overlaid on maps, these data create a rough overview of the number of
children affected by quake fallout from district to district. A total
of nearly 25 million children lived in the State of Gujarat before the
quake, representing about half the population.
UNICEF is working closely with the state government of Gujarat, the
UN family of agencies, and local and international NGOs in the planning
and provision of relief programs. In health, for example, UNICEF is
working closely with WHO, while in nutrition its key UN partner is WFP.
The UNICEF relief program of $12.8 million has received voluntary funding
support from a number of governments and donor agencies, including the
governments of the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Italy. Additional
support comes from various National Committees for UNICEF, non-profit
foundations that raise money and provide advocacy on behalf of UNICEF
in the developed nations.
There are many ways you can support these important relief efforts.
If you live in the US and wish to make a contribution, visit the US
Fund for UNICEF website. If you live outside the US, please see
our list of UNICEF National Committees
in 37 countries. Or, if your country does not have a UNICEF National
Committee, you can make a general contribution through this website
at www.supportunicef.org.
LATEST: 2 February 2001 - see UNICEF public
service announcement on India earthquake relief efforts. 
Click
to view
* * *
For further information, please contact:
Alfred Ironside, UNICEF Media, New York
(212) 326-7261
aironside@unicef.org
Hans Olsen, UNICEF Media, Geneva
(41-22) 909-5517
holsen@unicef.org
Liza Barrie, UNICEF Media, New York
(212) 326-7593
lbarrie@unicef.org
UNICEF continues its work in Gujarat
Thurs., 24 January 2002
In India, young earthquake
survivors return to school Thurs,14 June 2001
Immunizations begin in quake zone Tues, 13 February
2001
UNICEF wary of post-quake international adoptions
Fri, 9 February 2001
Comments by Maria Calvis,
UNICEF, from Gujarat Tuesday, 6 February 2001
Half of all schools damaged or destroyed in
India quake zone Mon, 5 February 2001
Emergency Update, Monday,
29 January 2001
UNICEF delivers drugs to quake area, assesses
impact on children Mon, 29 Jan. 2001
On the ground in India, UNICEF responds to
quake Sat, 27 January 2001
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