The first climate risk index for children released on august 19 by UNICEF tells us that children living in the Central African Republic, Chad and Nigeria are the most exposed to climate change; a situation that threatens their health, education and safety, and puts them at risk of contracting life-threatening diseases.

According to UNICEF report -titled the climate crisis is a crisis of children’s rights: Introducing the Climate Risk Index for Children-Youth Living in the Central African Republic, Chad, Nigeria, Guinea and in Guinea-Bissau are the most exposed to the effects of climate change. This report constitutes the first detailed analysis of these risks through the prism of young people. The countries are classified according to the degree of exposure of children to climatic and environmental shocks (cyclones, heat waves, etc.) and their degree of vulnerability to these shocks, measured according to their level of access to essential services.

According to the Children’s Climate Risk Index (IRCE):
• 240 million children are highly exposed to coastal flooding;
• 330 million children are highly exposed to river flooding;
• 400 million children are highly exposed to cyclones;
• 600 million children are highly exposed to vector-borne diseases;
• 815 million children are highly exposed to lead pollution;
• 820 million children are highly exposed to heat waves;
• 920 million children are highly exposed to water shortages;
• 1 billion children are highly exposed to extremely high levels of air pollution.

Read more on unicef.org