BY TRN Online, Kathmandu, Nov.20: On World Children Day, Nepal is celebrating Children’s Day of this year by illuminating the blue light in historic monuments Rani Pokhari and Dharahara, while assessing the impact of lockdown and COVID-19 pandemic on children.

This year’s theme by UNICEF is to help children to recover from interruptions and learning losses experienced through the pandemic last year.

This year, in particular, UNICEF calls on government, development partners, civil society, media, and other stakeholders to make a commitment to reimagining and building a better post-pandemic world for every child.

Celebrated every year on 20 November to mark the adoption of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), World Children’s Day is the global day of action for children, by UN member Governments, by civil society, by communities, and by children and young people themselves.

The household survey of UNICEF Nepal’s Child and Family Tracker (CFT) on the impact of COVID-19 on families with children has revealed a stark loss of earnings and livelihoods among half of the households with children surveyed. The survey has been collected periodically since the start of the pandemic.

COVID-19 and lockdown have a double impact on children in limiting their access to education, health services, nutritious food, and safety. The negative household coping mechanisms owing to the stress and unemployment amid COVID-19 have resulted in increases in early marriage, child labor, and other forms of child exploitation. The anxieties and pressures associated with the pandemic have also further increased the incidence of violence against children and women, as well as the previously high levels of mental health concerns for children, read the press release of UNICEF.

Elke Wisch, UNICEF representative to Nepal said that COVID-19 has had a devastating impact on children across Nepal and in particular children of the most vulnerable and marginalized families.

Listening to children and young people’s voices must be at the heart of how Nepal reimagines a better world for children, he added.

UNICEF has been working closely with Nepal to avert the issues of children.