Kathmandu, 06 November (H.S.): Ahead of the 31st United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP31), UNICEF Nepal has urged the government to place children’s rights and needs at the centre of its climate-related policies, adaptation plans, disaster risk reduction strategies and climate financing frameworks.

UNICEF has called on governments, development partners and climate finance institutions to increase investment in child-responsive climate adaptation measures and initiatives addressing climate-related loss and damage. It has particularly emphasised the need to strengthen essential services against the impacts of climate change, including healthcare, nutrition, safe drinking water and sanitation, education, child protection and social security. It has also stressed that access to these services must take into account the specific needs of children based on their age, gender and disability.

The organisation has urged national and local governments to formulate plans based on child-focused climate risk data and evidence, while giving priority to the communities most severely affected by climate change and those in vulnerable circumstances. It has also appealed to the private sector to support the development of climate-resilient infrastructure, clean energy solutions and innovative initiatives that safeguard children's well-being. In addition, UNICEF has called on all stakeholders to ensure the meaningful participation of children and young people in climate-related decision-making processes at the local, national and global levels.

The UNICEF report also underscores the importance of listening to the voices of children and young people. It notes that children and youth are already leading climate action at the local level and advocating stronger measures to address climate change.

Jayanti Bam, UNICEF Nepal’s Youth Advocate for Climate Action, said, “Climate change is not a future problem for children; it is already affecting our lives today.”

“When floods damage schools, children do not just lose their classrooms; they also lose learning opportunities, daily routines, friendships and a sense of safety,” she said.

Bam further observed that young people wanted to be part of the solution to the climate crisis. She urged decision-makers to invest in climate-resilient schools and essential services, listen to children's voices and provide them with meaningful opportunities to participate in decision-making processes that shape their future.

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar