Save the Children report: 'A heavy toll: the impact of one year of war on children in Ukraine'

The report published by Save The Children on 20 February, entitled 'A Heavy Toll: The Impact of a Year of War on Children in Ukraine', enlights the physical and psychological impact of the outbreak of war on children. One year after its outbreak, the serious consequences the war is having on the growth of the youngest children emerge:

• As of February 2022, at least 18,657 civilian casualties have been verified by the United Nations: 7,110 dead and 11,547 wounded. The real figures are probably much higher.
• The dramatic escalation of the war in Ukraine since February 2022 has spared no one: four children are seriously injured or killed every day on average, as a result of the conflict.
• Since the beginning of the war, children and adolescents have been forced to hide underground for about 920 hours, or 38.3 days. Over the past year, education has been under attack in Ukraine; as of 23 December 2022, the following data were recorded: at least 2.619 educational institutions have been damaged and more than 40.611 entirely destroyed; this means that one out of five schools in Ukraine has been attacked. Since September 2022, distance education has been the only option for millions of children throughout Ukraine. However, this education modality is strictly dependent on children's access to devices, power and the Internet; less than 30 percent of children have access to an individual device in Ukraine.
• At least 17.7 million people, including 4.1 million children, are in need of humanitarian assistance - about 45% of Ukraine's population prior to 24 February - and an unprecedented wave of displacement has been triggered both within Ukraine and in other European countries. Most of the displaced, both inside and outside the country, are women and children.

Finally, the report calls for a step change to protect, better than it has been so far, the children caught up in the conflict. Diplomatic initiatives, where they exist, must be channelled towards protecting children.