2021 in Photos
Children and UNICEF’s work in the Middle East and North Africa
- English
- العربية
Children continued to be at the centre of events in the Middle East and North Africa. At the peak of lockdowns and closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic, 110 million children were not able to go to school. Every country put in place at least one online education platform but many children missed out due to digital poverty. Nearly 40 per cent of children didn’t have access to the internet or electronic devices.
Photo Caption: Conjoined twins born in Yemen medically evacuated to Jordan to undergo an operation
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Too many children lost their lives including increasingly at sea in search of a better life and a future. At least 1,500 people -among them many children- perished in the Central Mediterranean this year alone. Sadly, children continued to be killed in conflicts in Syria, Yemen, Sudan and the State of Palestine. We marked a whole decade on the crisis in Syria and one year on the Beirut blast amid an absence of accountability or justice to the bereaved families.
Photo Caption: Sudan is the first country in the region to receive COVID-19 vaccines. Over 800,000 doses reached Khartoum in March 2021
Photo Caption: More than 10 years of conflict, displacement and loss of livelihoods have had an immense toll on children and their families in Syria
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As a result of ongoing crises, one in five children in the region depends on humanitarian assistance. UNICEF left no stone unturned to reach children in need wherever they are. We distributed around 40 million doses of routine vaccines for children against polio and measles. We reached nearly 20 million people with drinking water and nearly half a million people with cash assistance, a lifeline as many lost jobs and sunk into poverty.
Photo Caption: UNICEF’s Ambassador Yara joins the #Maskup campaign to encourage people around the region to wear masks against the COVID-19 pandemic
Photo Caption: A girl and a boy trace toys from their destroyed home during the escalation of violence in The State of Palestine where more than 65 children were killed
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The pandemic continued and with it the spread of false and inaccurate information. We went full blast on digital platforms, reaching 300 million people with information on vaccine safety and protection against COVID-19. To help with the global pandemic response, we delivered more than 10 million masks, face shields, gloves, hygiene kits, cleaning products, ventilators and oxygen concentrators.
Photo Caption: Displaced Iraqi children in the Hassan Sham Camp wearing masks in a classroom during the COVID-19 pandemic
Photo Caption: Children’s art exhibition reflecting on the Beirut port blast, one year on
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At the beginning of 2021, we celebrated the invention of the COVID-19 vaccines. Everyone was impacted by COVID. Millions got infected, many lost loved ones. Celebrations, events and ceremonies were cancelled. The vaccine brought us hope. As part of the COVAX initiative, UNICEF delivered nearly 109 million doses of COVID vaccines across the Middle East and North Africa.
Photo Caption: A girl in Jordan wearing a mask as schools reopened during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Photo Caption: Egypt’s pyramids and the Great Sphinx lit up in blue to celebrate 75 years of UNICEF
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As the school year approached, almost all schools across the region reopened and more teachers were getting the vaccine. Schools reopening is absolutely critical for children to overcome the education losses that COVID and conflict continue to inflict on them.
Photo Caption: A girl shows her marked finger after receiving the Polio vaccine, Aleppo, Syria
Photo Caption: UNICEF’s Ambassador Yara at the World Children’s Day concert, Expo 2020 in Dubai
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On 20 November, we celebrated World Children’s Day. Against all odds, children joined one of our ambassadors, the renowned singer Yara to launch a children’s song “We want to live”. The celebration, on the sides of the EXPO 2020, is believed to be one of UNICEF’s largest as we celebrated our 75th birthday. The event sent one message: children are asking and hoping for peace.
Photo Caption: A family receives UNICEF’s assistance in Syria
Photo Caption: The conjoined twins are now healthy and back in Yemen from Jordan after an operation and medical treatment
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We could not have done any of this without you: our staff, our supporters, our advocates, our partners, our readers. From the UNICEF family, and on behalf of millions of children in the region, we wish you a better, happy, healthy, and prosperous new year. Thank you for supporting children. We look forward to seeing you here in the new year!
Text by: Juliette Touma, Regional Chief of Advocacy and Communications, UNICEF Middle East and North Africa
