Plan aims to prevent forced marriages and provide emergency aid and education to children and young people in crisis areas.
Every sixth child lives in conflict zones, and there are an estimated 120 armed conflicts in the world. This is what the Finnish program director of the children’s rights organization Plan International said Annukka von Kaufmann Up in the morning.
Plan’s recent report found out the state of girls in the world. About 10,000 girls and boys aged 15–24 were interviewed for the report. In conflicts, they all had in common the shattering of their safe everyday life.
– Education has been interrupted, they have had to flee their homes, many have been separated from their families, and according to the report, many have a shortage of food, water and electricity. Girls face sexual violence, when rape is unfortunately a tool of warfare. The risk of child marriage is increasing, and boys are being recruited as fighters.
Humanitarian aid doesn’t always get there, but Plan has nevertheless been able to provide both emergency aid and training, says von Kaufmann. Plan has tried to secure access to menstrual pads for girls and to prevent child marriages.
The UN estimates that there are 300 million people in the world who need humanitarian assistance. That is why it must not be cut, and Finland must also promote the start of peace negotiations, says the program director.