Pandemic makes millions of children starve and beg

Children living in poverty are the worst hit by school closures during the coronavirus crisis, UNICEF has warned.

Children living in poverty are the worst hit by school closures during the coronavirus crisis, UNICEF has warned. Source: AAP

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World Vision surveyed 14,000 families in nine Asian countries and found children were being sent out to beg or do “other risky activities” to make up for their parents' lost work.


The report, Aftershocks: Out of Time, was released on Wednesday and found an estimated 85 million families across Asia had little or no food stocks and 110 million children are going hungry. 

 Laila, 45, can not provide food for her children after losing her job due to COVID-19.
Laila, 45, can not provide food for her children after losing her job due to COVID-19.
Laila, 45, can not provide food for her children after losing her job due to COVID-19. Source: Supplied


Eight per cent of those surveyed had sent children out to beg or do what they call “other risky activities”.

Seventy per cent of participants had fully or severely lost income.
Laila worked as a maid in three houses before the pandemic.
Laila worked as a maid in three houses before the pandemic. Source: Supplied
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