The State of the World's Children - UNICEF Report

10.00.00am GMT Fri 10th Dec 2004

UNICEF's has today published its annual report - The State of the World's Children 2005. Some of the fact that have come out of it are truly shocking and shameful for everyone in the developing world. Developed nations need to increase their International Aid budgets to tackle these and many other problems or we risk allowing a generation to die of AIDS, poverty and conflict.

The report paints a bleak picture of sub-Saharan Africa slipping further behind other developing regions such as southern Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. Sub-Saharan Africa has a special place in my heart having travelled there and seen many of the problems that are faced.

Carol Bellamy, UNICEF's Executive Director said "We believe Aids is the worst catastrophe ever to hit the world. It is just ripping up systems, be it health or education. Our children's childhood is being robbed from them. Unless action is taken, swiftly and decisively, to stem the tidal wave of infection and loss, it is estimated that by 2010 over 18m African children will have lost one or both parents to HIV/Aids.

The report also found that

· Of the 15m children orphaned by Aids, 80% are African.

· Around 1.9m children under the age of 14 in sub-Saharan Africa had the HIV virus, and around 1,700 children worldwide became infected every day.

· Nearly half of the 3.6m people killed in war since 1990 have been children.

· Almost half of the world's 2.2bn children lived in poverty.