20 May 2010

UNICEF urges to include children in Pacific recovery plans

7:04 pm on 20 May 2010

The outgoing head of UNICEF in the Pacific says governments need to be reminded that recovery from the global recession should include support for children.

Dr Will Parks is leaving his post in Suva this week as UNICEF's Chief of Policy to take up a new post in Nepal.

He says while it is tempting for authorities to focus investment in economic sectors to bounce back from the recession, children should not be forgotten.

"There's a very strong body of evidence that shows economic returns for countries that invest in the health of children, that invest in their education, invest in their nutrition and invest in the protection of the most vulnerable."

Dr Parks says progress made at the Pacific Conference of the human face of the global economic crisis made good progress in February and he is hopeful of more government action from the next Pacific Island Forum in August.