Nine out of 10 children in Gaza are unable to access enough nutrients from a diverse range of food groups essential for their healthy growth and development, according to a recently published report by the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF). The detailed UNICEF report, which was released last Thursday, highlights the exacerbating impact of localized conflicts on severe child food poverty.
The report underscores that children in highly unstable regions, such as Afghanistan, Somalia, and the Gaza Strip, face an “exceptionally high level” of food deprivation and life-threatening malnutrition. In Gaza specifically, extensive military activity has wreaked havoc on agriculture, killed livestock, decimated the fishing industry, and damaged critical infrastructure like food processing and storage facilities. Combined with stringent restrictions on imports and humanitarian aid, these disruptions have crippled the local food and health systems, leading to devastating consequences for children in the area. For more detailed information, visit the press release.
UNICEF’s methodology involved multiple rounds of data collection from December 2023 to April 2024, utilizing the RapidPro platform for real-time data collection via SMS surveys. The findings show that approximately 88 to 95 percent of children in Gaza are currently living in severe child food poverty, defined as consuming fewer than two of the eight designated food groups per day—a figure regarded as one of the highest ever recorded. This stark rise contrasts sharply with the 13 percent of children experiencing severe child food poverty in 2020, according to UNICEF’s data, reflecting a significant escalation in nutritional deprivation. Further context is available in the full report.
The report also outlines the broader global context of child food poverty, noting that around 181 million children under the age of five worldwide—about one in four—suffer from severe food poverty, making them up to 50 percent more likely to develop life-threatening malnutrition. This includes approximately 64 million children in South Asia and nearly 59 million children in Sub-Saharan Africa.
UNICEF is advocating for systemic changes to combat this crisis, urging governments and relevant stakeholders to enhance food and health systems and activate social protection mechanisms to alleviate income poverty. This includes initiatives like the Child Nutrition Fund (CNF), launched with support from entities such as the UK Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation, aiming to address malnutrition among children and women globally.
For further reading on the subject, please refer to the UNICEF statement on the implications of military operations on child nutrition in conflict zones.