Photo stories: better health, better life

By Mike Saycon

Xaiathon works all day – at home and in the field – and still finds time to breast feed her youngest son and play with her sons. Living an hour from her rice field, and even farther from the town centre, means a challenge to juggle her role at home and in following through her and her children’s health checks. Still, the boys are healthy, she says – and she and her husband are trying to have a baby girl.

Vilayphone and her husband Sonephet regularly take their five-month old son Konkham to the village health centre in Dongsavanh for his dose of vaccines and monitoring his weight. They want to keep him healthy and strong.

Lii, who was already married at age 15, comes to the health clinic in Dongsavanh Village to see her nurse, Keolammone, who makes sure she is healthy and ready to give birth in four months’ time. Lii works in the farm with her husband, but she has decided to stop working for now, to make sure she and her baby will remain healthy.

At only age 24, Chansamone works at the Phonxai Village health centre with the few other, servicing women and children from 10 villages and 21 sub-villages. She also does the works of being both a nurse and a midwife. The logo on her uniform says ‘Safe Mother, Safe Baby’.

Patients arrive at the district hospital in Xepon, Savannakhet, for their health checks, on their farm tractor – which is the only common mode of transport in rural areas. For many families who do not own any or cannot afford to hire one, they simply forgo their health checks, including immunisation doses for their children, and instead work at their farms. © UNICEF Laos/2018/Mike Saycon 

The ripple-effect of child educated

Mike Saycon

Kamla’s older sister, who takes care of their younger brother while their parents work at the farm, walks him to school. Many of the children’s parents are farmers, and on non-school days they help out along with their friends and neighbours. 

Kamla and his classmates return to their CBSR centre – from their 20-minute outdoor learning activities between their lessons. As many of their friends are from nearby houses, they have many children to play with during their games; especially those younger children who are not yet in the CBSR, or the older ones who are on their summer break from primary school.

  

Between their learning activities, children play various games as a group or with the other village children outside their classroom. Many of the outdoor games that they play as a class are designed to reinforce the lessons they had just learned, thus allowing for a more holistic learning experience.

Kham, village facilitator in Cho Tai village in Ta Oi, Saravan Province, believes in the importance of school readiness for children that he brings along his son Dao to join the classes as well. “I am always very happy when the children in my class are all in attendance, and it motivates me even more to make their lessons as fun and as interesting for them – so they want to keep on learning,” he says.

 

Kamla and his friends at the CBSR centre, on the more serious parts of their lessons – writing the alphabet and comparing notes. The CBSR is one of the interventions that UNICEF supports to increase the readiness of children to enter and stay on in primary school; in order for them to be competent and sufficiently skilled to finish through all levels of the formal education system and be employed later.

                                        

 

Literacy and numeracy modules in CBSRs are integrated with musical and games elements to keep the young pupils interested, giving the classrooms a fun vibe. The big groups of 30+ children can be challenging to manage for one or two village facilitators; hence by giving the children some form of entertainment while learning their lessons along with it, they are able to reinforce their lessons well.

Learning activities at the CBSR centre are designed to be as interactive as possible, to enhance the ability of the young learners in responding to stimuli such as colours, images and numbers; and allow them to engage actively with both their facilitators and peers. Pictured here is Kone who motivates his pupils to volunteer for a show-and-tell session with their peers.

UNICEF Executive Director: We must all hear the voices of 1.8 billion young people

Henrietta H. Fore

UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta H. Fore UNICEF stands with UNICEF supporters BTS, 

a global pop group, in advance of the launch of Generation Unlimited at Youth 2030.

Secretary-General, President Kagame, President Kim. And thank you Jayathma, for bringing to the halls of the United Nations something that is sorely needed: the voices of young people.

In my travels, I’ve heard their voices, too — their ideas, their enthusiasm, their vision for the future.

I’ve also heard their worries. That they will not find the education or skills they need. That they won’t find a job. They’re worried about violence at home…online…at school…in their neighbourhoods. And girls are worried about the discrimination and violence they face just because they’re girls.

We must all hear the voices of 1.8 billion young people. Which is why UNICEF is launching Generation Unlimited, or “Gen-U.” Our time. Our turn. Our unlimited future.

On 24 September 2018 at the United Nations Headquarters, UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta H. Fore (left) speaks at the launch of Generation Unlimited at Youth 2030, a High-Level event at the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly.

We’re calling for cutting-edge solutions and new ideas to get every young person in school, training or age-appropriate employment by 2030.

We’re asking governments, businesses, foundations, academia, non-profits, communities and innovators to help us. And we’re co-creating these solutions with young people in the lead. Supporting them as — together — we design and scale-up solutions that address these needs.

Today, we’re announcing a first round of solutions that can be scaled-up.

From a program in Argentina that connects remote, rural students with teachers via digital technology. To a program in Bangladesh that is training tens of thousands of young people in trades like tailoring, motorcycle repair and mobile-phone servicing. To a job-shadowing program in South Africa connecting young women with mentors in the STEM fields — science, technology, engineering and math.

On 24 September 2018 at the United Nations Headquarters, UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta H. Fore (right)speaks at launch of Generation Unlimited at Youth 2030, a High-Level event at the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly.

The next step is to gather public and private partners around these and other promising solutions to develop concrete plans to grow the funding base necessary to reach more young people, in more communities and countries.

But we need more ideas — big and small, local and global.

The possibilities are endless. And the need is urgent.

A massive generation is about to inherit our world. Please help us leave a legacy of hope and opportunities for them. And most importantly, with them. Thank you.

And now I’d like to ask my friend Jim Kim, President of the World Bank — and a true champion of children and young people — to say a few words.
 
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Joint Statement: Development Partners Endorse MOH action for Appropriate Infant and Young Child Feeding in Emergencies

Vientiane, 18 September 2018 – “UNICEF, WHO, UNFPA, and Save the Children strongly endorse the decision taken by the Ministry of Health, Department of Health and Hygiene Promotion, to not accept donations of infant formula, breastmilk substitutes, milk products marketed for infants and young children and feeding bottles and teats. Jointly, we commend the Ministry of Health for taking such strong action to protect, promote and support breastfeeding by mothers who due to the flood emergency in Sanamxai District, Attapeu Province have been displaced from their homes and villages”.    

“The Department of Health and Hygiene Promotion (DHHP) made it very clear in their notification dated 05 September 2018, to donors, manufacturers, distributers, retailers, representatives of infant formula brands and individuals, that in accordance to the National Nutrition Strategy and Plan of Action (2016-2025), the Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn and Child Health  (RMNCH) Strategy (2016-2020) and the International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes, donations and distribution of infant formula or any other breastmilk substitutes, feeding bottles and teats are not permitted”.  

“The DHHP stated that the risk of contamination of infant formula during storage and preparation is extremely high in such poor hygiene conditions and thus places the lives of Lao infants and young children in danger of illness and death. To prevent the potential deaths of infants and young children, the DHHP calls for provincial and district authorities in Attapeu to decline any donations of infant formula, follow-on formula for young children, other milk products marketed to infants and young children and feeding bottles and teats. DHHP also calls for health teams, development partners and UN who are supporting the emergency response to provide counselling and support mothers to continue breastfeeding.” 

“This notification from MOH, DHHP comes at an important time in the emergency response. Recent reports and photos captured during monitoring activities by UN staff on the ground, confirm that infant formula donations are being distributed to families living in temporary camps which not only violates the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes, it is contradictory to the National Infant and Young Child Feeding Guidelines”. 

“In such situation, UNICEF, WHO, UNFPA, and Save the Children, stands by the Ministry of Health decision to not accept donations of infant formula or other breastmilk substitutes and feeding bottles and teats. Together, we support the Government of Lao PDR to support appropriate infant and young child feeding and reiterate the caution about unnecessary use of breastmilk substitutes and other milk products”. 

“UNICEF, WHO, UNFPA, and Save the Children reiterate that no food or liquid other than breastmilk, not even water, is needed to meet an infant’s nutritional requirements during the first six months of life. After this period, infants should begin to receive a variety of foods, while breastfeeding continues up to two years of age or beyond. Children from the age of six months require nutrient-rich complementary foods in addition to breastfeeding. Provision of fortified foods or micronutrient supplements such as vitamin A or zinc in supervised programmes for young children represent a much more appropriate form of assistance than distributing milk products”.

“The valuable protection against infection that breastmilk confers is more important in environments without safe water supply and sanitation. Therefore, creation of a protective environment and provision of skilled support to breastfeeding women are essential interventions.  This is especially critical where the use of milk products prior to the emergency was low, and mothers who would usually breastfeed might needlessly start giving artificial feeds”. 

“Jointly, we commit to supporting the Government of Lao PDR to include capacity building for breastfeeding and infant and young child feeding as part of emergency preparedness in the future and as part of the disaster response already underway in Attapeu Province. We commit to supporting financial and human resources for proper and timely implementation of support for breastfeeding and infant and young child feeding in emergencies”. 

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For more information, please contact: 

UNICEF: Maria Fernandez, Chief of Communication. Email: mfernandez@unicef.org; Telephone: +856 20 55519681. 

Lao flood emergency: delivering safe water and sanitation for children at risk

By Simon Nazer

Children used a newly installed water tap in Ban Bok camp, Lao PDR © UNICEF/2018/Nazer

UNICEF, with the support of USAID, is working to install water pumps and toilets in camps for children and families displaced by the floods which swept through south Lao PDR late July this year.

Khao Yai, 12, is currently staying in Ban Bok camp. His family lost everything during the floods. 

© UNICEF/2018/Nazer

Witnessing the floods take their homes and in many cases livelihoods was an overwhelming experience for children and families. “I just remember water coming into my home and people shouting,” says Khao Yai, 12, who is staying in a camp in Bon Bok. “I don’t really remember much after that. We just had to go right away, we left everything.”

Widespread flood damage enroute to Ban Bok camp. © UNICEF/2018/Nazer

Khao’s experience is shared with over 4,000 other people who were displaced by the floods.

During such emergencies, access to clean water and sanitation facilities becomes extremely important to ensure people stay healthy and clear of potentially life-threatening diseases. This is why one of UNICEF’s priorities is to deliver safe water and sanitation facilities to hard-to-reach camps like Ban Bok, with USAID’s support.

A newly installed water pump in Ban Bok camp. © UNICEF/2018/Nazer

UNICEF has also provided 35 water points and constructed seven latrines in Ban Bok camp alone. Soap, tarpaulins, buckets, bowls and jerry cans have been distributed to all camps except those which are inaccessible.

Children participate in handwashing promotion activities. © UNICEF/2018/Nazer

Handwashing with soap is among the most effective and inexpensive ways to prevent diarrheaol diseases and pneumonia, which together are responsible for the majority of child deaths globally and become more prevalent during emergencies. 

Facilitors use stories to teach children about the importance of handwashing and good hygiene practices.  
© UNICEF/2018/Nazer

In order to deliver messages on handwashing, outreach teams supported by UNICEF visit camps to teach children about the importance of handwashing and how to wash their hands properly. Children like Khao take part in singing, dancing and storytelling activities to ensure they learn the right habits that will keep them safe for a lifetime.

Children participate in the handwashing song. © UNICEF/2018/Nazer

“Our teacher already taught us how to wash our hands at school and I use the new tap a lot,” says Khao. “I’m also using the new toilet here, it’s much better than going out in the open.”

(L) Khao Yai washes his hands in a newly installed tap in his camp. 

(R) A girl enters a newly built latrine in Ban Bok camp. © UNICEF/2018/Nazer

While it’ll take time to rebuild after what happened, delivering safe water and sanitation facilities to children like Khao, and their communities, is the first step to ensuring they stay healthy and happy.