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UN Children's Fund receives less than 20 per cent of appeal for flooded Tajikistan

UN Children's Fund receives less than 20 per cent of appeal for flooded Tajikistan

With a cholera outbreak, along with floods and mudflows from heavy rains and thawing snow and ice devastating Tajikistan, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) today said it has received just $700,000 out of the $4 million for which it has appealed urgently.

Several Tajik districts have lost infrastructure, including houses, school buildings, roads and bridges, and UNICEF's appeal covers health and nutrition, water and environmental sanitation, education and child protection. It received $693,793, and Japan built a school for 530 children in northern Penjikent district.

UNICEF has allocated funds for reconstruction of water and sanitation facilities in schools in the affected areas and to pay for promoting hygiene. Future action will include establishing sanitation facilities and water supply systems in affected schools in seven districts. Construction of latrines and water supply systems will be supported by the provision of hygiene promotion materials, as well as peer-to-peer training among the children.

In the coming months, UNICEF said, it will continue to provide humanitarian assistance to ensure the survival of children in emergencies. Health kits, hygiene kits, supplementary drugs, vaccines, and other humanitarian health supplies will be made available, along with information, education and communication materials.