UNICEF: 43.1 million children displaced by climate-exacerbated disasters over 6 years

Oct. 6 (UPI) -- UNICEF on Friday said that natural disasters exacerbated by climate change have forced millions of children out of their homes in the past six years with the total expected to double in the coming decades.

In the report titled "Children Displaced In A Changing Climate," UNICEF said weather events have internally displaced 43.1 million children in 44 countries between 2016 and 2021.

"It is terrifying for any child when a ferocious wildfire, storm or flood barrels into their community," said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell in a statement. "For those who are forced to flee, the fear and impact can be especially devastating, with worry of whether they will return home, resume school, or be forced to move again."

Russell added that as the impacts of climate change escalate, "so too will climate-driven movement."

China and the Philippines were among the countries with the greatest number of child displacements "due to their exposure to exposure to extreme weather, large child populations and progress made on early warning and evacuation capacities."

Floods and storms accounted for 95% of child displacements worldwide.

Bangladesh, China, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Nigeria, Philippines, Somalia, South Sudan and Sudan had the most child displacements 2016-2021 from floods, according to UNICEF.

Bangladesh, China, Cuba, Honduras, India, Madagascar, Mozambique, Philippines, the United States and Viet Nam had the most displaced by storms.

Afghanistan, Angola, Brazil, Burundi, Ethiopia, India, Iraq, Madagascar, Somalia and South Sudan saw the most children displaced by drought.

Australia, Canada, China, France, Greece, Israel, Spain, Syria, Turkey and the United States had the most child wildfire displacements.

Looking ahead, UNICEF said a risk model developed by the Internal Displacement Monitoring Center reports that over the next 30 years nearly 96 million children could potentially be displaced by riverine floods.

Cyclonic winds and storm surges have the potential to displace 10.3 million and 7.2 million children over 30 years.

UNICEF urged world leaders meeting for the COP28 Climate Change Summit to act to help protect children and young people from displacement.

UNICEF said steps should be taken to protect children from the impacts of climate change-exacerbated disasters by "ensuring that child-critical services -- including education, health, nutrition, social protection and child protection services -- are shock-responsive, portable and inclusive, including for those already uprooted from their homes."

UNICEF said children should be prepared to live in a climate change world by improving their adaptive capacity and resilience.

For those already displaced, UNICEF said they should be prioritized with disaster assistance and "investments to prepare for a future already happening."

UNICEF said children are especially at risk of displacement in countries that are already facing high poverty and violent conflicts.