With approximately 400,000 people displaced by fighting in Southern Kyrgyzstan, the UN Children’s Fund is warning that separated families and missing children are an emerging issue.

UNICEF’s head of office in Kyrgyzstan, Jonathon Veitch expressed concern about the thousands of families that have been split up. “Ninety per cent of the refugees who fled into Uzbekistan were women, children and the elderly. The families need to be reunited as soon as possible.”

UNICEF is mobilizing nearly $10 million dollars to provide emergency relief to the displaced people in Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. UNICEF emergency supplies have already started being distributed to refugees and displaced people, including medicines, surgical materials, water, sanitation supplies, tents, clothing, blankets, health kits and kitchen sets.

Conditions among the refugee camps in Uzbekistan are cramped with major water and sanitation problems.

Mr Veitch stated that reports of diarrheal disease outbreaks were coming in from Southern Kyrgyzstan. Lack of access to clean water and safe sanitation facilities in an emergency can lead to increased risk of diseases like diarrhoea, which can be fatal particularly to vulnerable children under 5 years of age.

“We will have more emergency supplies arriving in Osh at the weekend, but security concerns still hamper our operation Kyrgyzstan,” says Mr Veitch.

UNICEF’s Representative in Uzbekistan Jean-Michel Delmotte – who has just returned from the border in eastern Uzbekistan – says he had seen hundreds of children who were suffering psychologically and physically.

“It is heart-wrenching and UNICEF will deploy as soon as possible counsellors to assist with wide scale psychosocial interventions.”

How you can help
UNICEF's work relies completely on donations. Please support the UNICEF NZ Emergency Fund (online donation) or call 0800-800-194.

More information
Listen to a UNICEF Radio report on the situation for refugees in Uzbekistan (3:48)