Thousands of children will benefit from European aid in Libya

UNICEF Representative in Libya Abdulkadir Musse said, “The contribution from the European Union is very welcomed, especially as it comes at a time when hundreds of internally displaced, migrant and refugee children are living in Libya and going through dangers and perils.”

The program is sectioned into two phases, the total costs of which being €19,912,219, Phase one is estimated at €12,912,219 and Phase two estimated at €7,000,000.

Musse also added, ” The partnership with the EU builds on UNICEF’s mission to protect the rights of children wherever they are. Despite the complex and fragile context in Libya, we will continue to work toward finding sustainable solutions to improve the availability and quality of basic services available to all children and their families in Libya.”

The purpose of the program is to target the most vulnerable children in impoverished and war-affected areas to grant them improved protection and quality educational services.

UNICEF will also be paying extra attention to gender equality and measures will be put in place to provide protection and aid to an equal number of boys and girls across Libya’s struggling regions.

According to the UN, vulnerable children includes migrants, refugees, internally displaced persons, returnees, unaccompanied and separated children, children with disabilities, victims of violence and gender-based violence and marginalised children from host communities.

The programme will also aim support institutions responsible for providing basic social services to children in Libya, as well as supporting the national and subnational authorities in fulfilling the Child Rights Convention, which was ratified by Libya in 1993.

The approach to implementing the program and distributing the funds will remain flexible to the needs of the beneficiaries to address the country’s unstable situation and the ongoing crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic.