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- Ethiopia and Mozambique were named in the UN's report on Children and Armed Conflict.
- Somalia and the DRC joined Israel and the occupied Palestinian Territory, Syria and Yemen as the most hostile areas for children.
- Armed groups last year released a number of children to their communities in the Central African Republic and the DRC.
Ethiopia and Mozambique joined the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the Central African Republic and Somalia as African hotspots in the annual United Nations (UN) report on Children and Armed Conflict.
The report details the "horrific conditions" in conflict zones from events and data collected in 2021.
It said Ethiopia and Mozambique were added to the report "as situations of concern, reflecting the dramatic impact of hostilities on children in these areas".
The report outlined issues linked to "conflict escalation, military coups and takeovers, protracted and new conflicts, as well as violations of international law".
"Cross-border conflict and intercommunal violence also impacted the protection of children, especially in the Lake Chad Basin and Central Sahel regions."
There's an ongoing armed insurgency waged by Islamic extremists in the gas-oil-rich Cabo Delgado province, which has resulted in mass displacement, and has created a complex humanitarian crisis in one of Mozambique's poorest regions.
According to Unicef, in May this year, over 23 000 people were displaced, of which 51% were children. Since the start of the insurgency in November 2017, almost a million people have been displaced.
In Ethiopia's Tigray province, there's a civil war that began in November 2020, which has resulted in the blockage of the province and it is now cut off from the outside world.
Unicef estimates that 400 000 children are malnourished as a result of the war that has affected agriculture and socio-economic activities.
Despite a mini truce put in place in April, not enough relief aid is reaching the area.
Somalia and the DRC account for the worst cases of violations in Africa for 2021.
The report says:
The killing and maiming of children was the most verified grave violation, followed by the recruitment and use of children, and the denial of humanitarian access.
The report documented 24 000 cases of grave violations against children and estimates "an average of some 65 violations every day".
Virginia Gamba, the special representative for the secretary-general for Children and Armed Conflict, called for more to be done to protect children in affected areas, so that they get a chance to thrive, like their counterparts in free countries.
"There is no word strong enough to describe the horrific conditions that children in armed conflict have endured.
"This report is a call to action to intensify our work to better protect children in armed conflict and ensure that they are given a real chance to recover and thrive," she said.
On a positive note, the report highlighted that 12 214 children were released by armed forces and groups in various countries, including the Central African Republic, Colombia, DRC, Myanmar and Syria.
The report recommended that these children should be provided with appropriate support to reintegrate into their communities.
The News24 Africa Desk is supported by the Hanns Seidel Foundation. The stories produced through the Africa Desk and the opinions and statements that may be contained herein do not reflect those of the Hanns Seidel Foundation.
