Africa: Cost of Middle East War Harshly Impacting Children in Africa, Globally - UN Agency

Geneva — The war launched in the Middle East by the United States is nearly 100 days old, and the fallout extends far beyond the region, with the cost of vaccines impacting children across Africa and globally, says the United Nations.

“Transportation and logistics costs alone are having a tremendous impact. Maritime diversions around the Cape of Good Hope now add two to four weeks to shipping times,” said Meeus, addressing a UN press conference in Geneva.

“Air freight capacity has tightened across Middle East routes, while port congestion is spreading across Africa and beyond,” said the UNICEF official.

Increased transport costs mean less money for the lifesaving supplies children need, creating a precarious situation for agencies like UNICEF and severely impacting operations.

“Air freight costs for vaccines from India to Ethiopia, Nigeria, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo have jumped 50 to 70 percent,” Meeus explained.

“Trucking costs for Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food, from Kenya manufacturers to Somalia, South Sudan, and the DRC have climbed 30 percent.”

At the same time, sea freight for education materials from China to Yemen and Mozambique has surged 100 to 150 per cent.

“In Nigeria, rerouting syringes for a polio vaccination campaign targeting 12 million children cost an additional $200,000, a 56 percent transport increase,” said the UNICEF official.

“In Mali, the international freight budget saw a significant increase of 36 percent in the first quarter.”

With rising costs, the UNICEF Mali office faces the choice of reducing the number of supplies ordered and the number of children who can be treated.

“African ports in Beira, Conakry, Abidjan, Dar es Salaam, and Mombasa are all experiencing significant delays,” noted Meeus.

“Landlocked countries that depend on these corridors continue to face cascading effects. Ethiopia's Djibouti corridor, the country's primary humanitarian gateway, is under growing pressure.”

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He said UNICEF faces the unprecedented scenario of nearly exhausting its annual transport contributions from logistics partners.

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