UNICEF has warned that around 16 million children are "in urgent need of life-saving support" after the monsoon rains and catastrophic flooding that have hit Bangladesh, India and Nepal. Up to a third of Bangladesh is under water. A total of 45 million people have been badly affected in the rains. UNICEF said: "Millions of children have seen their lives swept away by these devastating floods. Children have lost their homes, schools and even friends and loved ones." It added: "There is a danger the worst could still be to come as rains continue and flood waters move south."
UNICEF outlined what it is doing. It said: "[We are] on the ground working in close coordination with…governments…in the South Asian countries to scale up [our] responses and respond to the immediate needs of affected children and their families." It added: "Massive damage to schools…and supplies means hundreds of thousands of children may miss weeks or months of school. Getting children back into school is [very important] in establishing a sense of stability for children during times of crisis and provides a sense of normality when everything else is being turned upside down."