The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic had a profound impact on the health and psychosocial well-being of the children in India, UNICEF said on Thursday.
Closure
of schools prevented children from gaining access to learning and limited
interaction with their peers. The pandemic also brought stress on parents and
caregivers posing challenges to their capacity of providing care and engaging
with their children, it said in a statement.
According
to the world body, an estimated 50 million of children in India suffered from
mental health issues even before the pandemic.
At
least one in seven children, or 332 million globally, has lived under required
or recommended nationwide stay-at-home policies for at least nine months since
the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, putting their mental health and well-being
at risk, it said.
UNICEF,
in collaboration with Childline, has brought out a manual for parents and caregivers,
as well as children and adolescents.
It
explains the COVID-19 disease, how it can be prevented and helps in managing
stress, fear and anxiety due to the pandemic situation.
"Mental
health and well-being of children is of serious concern, especially in the
context of the pandemic-induced stress they have been experiencing.
Psycho-social support from teachers, parents and caregivers is a priority.
Supportive structures and actions which help children and care givers manage
stress, fear and anxiety need to be strengthened.
"Over
the past year, we have seen increased risk of violence faced by children. We
need to join forces to build a caring structure for girls and boys to help in
their psychological well being as much as their physical safety,” said UNICEF
India Representative Yasmin Ali Haque, .
During
the pandemic, UNICEF has trained over 8,000 functionaries from Childline, civil
society networks, district child protection units, child care institutions and
one-stop centre functionaries to provide psychosocial first aid.
Approximately
446,180 children, adolescents and their parents/caregivers were reached in 17
states with mental health and psychosocial support.
Working
with state governments and CSO partners, UNICEF supported over 7,00,000 migrant
workers and their families in accessing government benefits and social
protection schemes.
Other
areas covered, include risk communication and community engagement on COVID-19,
gender-based violence, child labour and child marriage, the statement said.
According
to WHO, the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted or halted critical mental health
services in 93 per cent of countries worldwide, while the demand for mental
health support is increasing, the statement said.
"If
we did not fully appreciate the urgency prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, surely
we do now," said UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore.
"Countries must dramatically invest in expanded mental health services and support for young people and their caregivers in communities and schools. We also need scaled-up parenting programmes to ensure that children from vulnerable families get the support and protection they need at home," Fore added.
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