東亞及太平洋地區氣候變化嚴重衝擊兒童生活兒童表示已感受到氣候變化的威力 | 最新消息 | 訊息中心

東亞及太平洋地區氣候變化嚴重衝擊兒童生活兒童表示已感受到氣候變化的威力

2011-11-14

14-11-11_cover
曼谷／香港，2011年11月14日——根据联合国儿童基金会（UNICEF）发表的《气候变化与自然灾害对东亚及太平洋地区儿童的影响》（Children’s Vulnerabilities to Climate Change and Disaster Impacts in East Asia and the Pacific）报告，气候变化为人类的生活造成众多负面影响，首当其冲的就是儿童。在东亚及太平洋地区数以百万计的儿童本来已缺乏清洁食水饮用及适当的衞生设施，时刻面对着粮食危机及疾病的威胁，而气候变化则会令到这些问题进一步恶化。

全球儿童致命的多个主要元兇，均显示与气候变化有莫大关连。研究证实，气温上升是会导致营养不良、霍乱、肠道疾病、登革热及疟疾等蚊媒传染病风险增加的，由于儿童的免疫系统未发展成熟，因此，在一般情况下，儿童患上这些可致命疾病的风险较成年人为高，甚至会较容易因出现并发症而死亡。

这份报告由UNICEF委託专责小组，在印尼、基里巴斯、蒙古、菲律宾和瓦努阿图5个地区进行研究。研究收集了当地儿童的意见及其他相关调查数据，总结出气候变化的趋势及对东亚及太平洋地区儿童所带来的潜在影响。是次研究並获得与国际科学界和健康界合作多年、曾参与出版《刺针（The Lancet）》及《新科学家（New Scientist）》等逾2,000份期刊的Reed Elsevier 集团支持。

「报告提醒我们，气候变化与儿童所面对的种种挑战有着密切关係。」UNICEF东亚及太平洋地区主任Anupama Rao Singh女士续指，「报告亦让我们得悉儿童面对气候变化的切身经歷，及气候变化对儿童的健康、教育和发展所带来的独有威胁。」

虽然报告显示气候变化的影响存在区域性的差异，但亦指出各地的儿童都正在一起承受气候变化对环境造成的恶果。

A boy and his father walk with their fishing gear into the Pacific Ocean near Tarawa, the capital. In late 2006 in the Republic of Kiribati, childrens quality of life is declining, as it is across the region. Kiribati is one of 14 Pacific Island Countries, which form a group of atolls dispersed over 30 million square kilometres of the Pacific Ocean. Because populations are scattered across multiple islands, efficient delivery of health care, education and other social services is difficult. The region is also vulnerable to natural disasters like floods, typhoons and volcanic eruptions. While overall infant and under-five mortality rates have declined since 1990, some countries, including Kiribati, lag behind in improving child health and access to basic services. Across the region, birth registration systems are weak or fragmented. Sixty per cent of Pacific children are anaemic, and deficiencies in Vitamin A, iodine and other micronutrients are common. Immunization rates are declining in many nations, partly due to the challenge of maintaining the cold chain in remote islands. Some 20 per cent of Pacific Islanders have no access to improved drinking water, while 30 per cent lack sanitation facilities. Poverty forces many children to drop out of school, and while HIV/AIDS infection rates are low, unsafe sex practices and lack of knowledge prevail. Increases in teen pregnancies, drug and alcohol abuse, domestic and sexual violence and child trafficking are contributing to an overall decline in living standards for children and women. UNICEF and its partners are working with health ministries to improve birth registration practices and other child health initiates; deliver psychosocial support to children and families affected by natural disasters and political conflicts; and raise awareness among young people of HIV/AIDS and its prevention. UNICEF is also providing assistance throughout the region in the areas of immunization; child and maternal health; water and sanitation; and education.

A first-grade student walks several kilometres to her home after school in the district of Altai, in Khovd Province. A mountain range rises in front of her. In March 2010 in western Mongolia, heavy snow, strong winds and extreme cold have created crisis conditions in over half the countrys provinces. Temperatures have fallen to minus-50 degrees Celsius, and snow is impeding access to food, fuel, sanitation and basic medical care. The crisis, known locally as a dzud, has killed at least nine children in one province, and has trapped many others in dormitories with failing heating systems and limited food supplies. Over 22,000 children in dormitories need emergency aid, and an additional 40,000 children may soon need assistance as well. The Government has declared a state of disaster in 12 of the countrys 21 provinces, with seven additional provinces expected to fall into disaster status. The dzud poses longer-term threats as well: Cold temperatures have killed over 2.7 million livestock, which may increase unemployment and poverty for the third of the population employed in agriculture. Animal carcasses also threaten to pollute soil and spread disease when the cold weather recedes in June. UNICEF is responding by providing food, fuel, blankets, hygiene kits, medical supplies and boots to over 60,000 children, including those in dormitories and isolated villages. UNICEF is also collaborating with other United Nations agencies to supply hospitals and provide mobile medical teams in isolated areas. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is offering a cash-for-work programme that pays herders to properly dispose of livestock carcasses.

A boy carries supplies through waist-high floodwater in Pasig City in Manila, the capital. On 30 September 2009 in the Philippines, over half a million people are displaced by flooding caused by Tropical Storm Ketsana (also known as Ondoy), which struck on 26 September. The storm dumped over a months worth of rain on the island of Luzon in only 12 hours. The flooding has affected some 1.8 million people, and the death toll has climbed to 246; both numbers are expected to rise as aid workers reach additional disaster areas. The Government has declared a state of calamity in Metropolitan Manila the capital city with a population of over 15 million and 25 other provinces. Power outages and mud-choked roads are slowing rescue efforts, and shelters report shortages of food, medicine and other essential supplies. Stagnant floodwater poses disease and sanitation hazards, and two other tropical storms are approaching the country, complicating relief efforts. UNICEF has responded by distributing hygiene kits, essential medicines, water purification tablets, portable toilets, blankets and soap, and is collaborating with the relief efforts of other UN agencies. UNICEF is also working to address the long-term needs of affected children by providing psychosocial support and planning for the rehabilitation of damaged schools.

Rozina, 15, treats ackish water with aluminium sulphate ('alum') wrapped in fishing net at her home in the village of Padma in Borguna District. Rozina lives with her parents and two younger siblings. During Cyclone Sidr, their home and village were submerged and the pond they used for drinking water was polluted. They must now drink water from the Baulestar River, which feeds directly into the saltwater Bay of Bengal. To make it safer, Rozina first uses a piece of cloth as a filter against mud and rocks. She then treats the water with aluminium sulphate ('alum'), which causes dirt and other particles to settle so that clear water can be decanted. Today she will also add a UNICEF-provided water purification tablet to kill bacteria and prevent water-bourne diseases.

在基里巴斯，儿童向调查人员表示海浪侵蚀的情况日益严重；当蒙古的儿童面对着严酷的寒冬和水资源逐渐减少时，菲律宾的儿童正经歷暴雨连连的日子；瓦努阿图的儿童则诉说，海水倒灌，令河水盐分上升，食水资源下降。

是次研究的地区，每4名儿童当中，就有1名儿童因营养不足而阻碍正常发育，而水灾、龙捲风和干旱等自然灾害将进一步打击儿童的成长及发展。报告显示，天灾频繁等对农业收成带来长远的负面影响，而农作物失收引致粮食价格上升，便间接增加儿童营养不良的发病率。

农业收成取决于气温、降雨、水的盐度等受气候影响的因素。在亚太地区，农业生产活动佔区内经济收入逾50%，同时在区内大部份国家国民生产总值的重要支柱。

印度、蒙古和太平洋地区的儿童分別透露，气候变化影响了家中生计，父母因而要求子女辍学，外出收集食水和燃料来帮补生活。

Rao Singh女士坦言：「鼓励儿童就提升对气候变化的应对能力，及减低天灾所造成的祸害出谋献策，是成功对抗气候变化的关键。儿童对生态环境的独特见解，在帮助社区化解气候变化带来的危机担当重要的角色。」

有证据显示，教导儿童认识气候变化，並鼓励他们参与相关活动，能让儿童学懂如何在气候变化中保护自己。並可透过儿童将有关讯息在社区中传递开去，从而让更多人懂到就气候变化作好准备及自我防卫。

「气候变化确确实实影响着儿童的生活，更关乎到他们的未来的福祉。今天能够订下正确的决策，将可成就他日稳健的基础。」Rao Singh女士唿吁，「因此现在正是采取适当措施的时候，我们要积极回应气候变化带来的挑战，並确保冲着儿童而来的危机得到大家关注。我深信，只要我们团结一致，将可更有效地应对气候变化的挑战，为儿童建设一个更好的世界。」