Nearly 10 million Nepali children exposed to unhealthy air, UNICEF warns

Being exposed to unhealthy air means living, learning or playing where pollution levels are harmful to health. UNICEF estimates that 9.9 million children in Nepal face this exposure. The concern is especially serious because children are still growing and depend on healthy environments for development, learning and wellbeing.

Polluted air can enter children's bodies when they breathe. It can irritate the airways and make breathing problems worse. Pollution episodes can also add pressure to health services already strained by climate-related shocks. The report connects environmental hazards with threats to children's health, nutrition, education and protection.

Air pollution is one part of a wider climate-risk picture in Nepal. Children also face drought, extreme heat and landslides, while many lack safely managed drinking water. UNICEF calls for resilient health services, clean energy, stronger water and sanitation systems, and child-focused climate planning to reduce these risks.

UNICEF's report identifies several large groups of children facing environmental and climate hazards in Nepal. It estimates that 9.9 million are exposed to unhealthy air pollution. Another 7.3 million face drought, while 5.7 million experience exposure to extreme hot days. These figures show how widely climate and environmental risks reach.

Rainfall-triggered landslides affect an estimated 2.9 million children. A further 2.4 million are exposed to multiple high-intensity climate hazards. These categories describe different exposures and may overlap, so they should not simply be added together as a total number of unique children.

The figures matter because exposure can damage more than immediate health. Climate shocks can disrupt education, nutrition, water access and protection. UNICEF says Nepal needs child-focused risk data, resilient services and adaptation financing, especially for communities with fewer resources to cope and recover.

The report identifies unhealthy air pollution, drought, extreme hot days and rainfall-triggered landslides as major hazards affecting Nepal's children. It also describes floods, heatwaves and pollution episodes as threats to children's daily lives. These dangers can affect health directly and place added pressure on water, sanitation, nutrition, education and protection services.

Exposure to several hazards creates overlapping problems. For example, a community facing drought may already struggle with water and nutrition, then experience extreme heat or a landslide. When hazards arrive together or repeatedly, families and services must respond to more than one need at once. The report says this compounds children's risks and makes recovery harder.

An estimated 2.4 million children face multiple high-intensity climate hazards. UNICEF therefore calls for child-focused risk data, resilient infrastructure and investment in adaptation and loss-and-damage support. Planning must prioritise vulnerable children and communities with fewer resources.

Climate hazards affect children not only through direct injury or illness, but also by weakening essential services. The report highlights health, nutrition, education, water, sanitation and child protection as interconnected needs. When these systems are disrupted, children may lose the support that helps them stay healthy, learn and remain safe.

A damaged school is more than a damaged building. UNICEF youth advocate Jayanti Bam says floods can take away learning opportunities, routines, friendships and a sense of safety. Climate-related shocks can also increase disease outbreaks and the risks of child labour and child marriage. Drought and heat can intensify pressure on food and water supplies.

Nepal already has gaps in basic services: only 47.5 percent of the population has safely managed drinking water, and one in four children under five is stunted. UNICEF urges investment in resilient services, social protection, climate-resilient schools and planning that includes children's rights.

Climate risk is not shared equally among Nepal's children. The report says children living in poverty, girls, children with disabilities, historically marginalised communities and those in remote, climate-vulnerable areas face disproportionately high risks. They also have fewer resources to cope with disasters and recover afterward.

Poverty can limit access to safe water, healthcare, transport, secure housing and continued education. Remote communities may be harder to reach when roads or services are disrupted. Discrimination, disability and gender inequality can create additional barriers to information, decision-making and assistance. These factors can overlap, leaving some children especially exposed when hazards strike.

Nepal has 22 percent of children living in multidimensional poverty, while essential services remain incomplete. UNICEF calls for age-, gender- and disability-responsive services, disaggregated child-focused data and targeted investment. Adaptation should prioritise communities facing the highest risks rather than treating all children alike.

Child-responsive adaptation means preparing essential services to keep children healthy, learning and protected during climate shocks. UNICEF highlights resilient health, nutrition, water, sanitation and hygiene, education, child protection and social protection. Adaptation should reflect children's rights and account for age, gender and disability.

A climate-resilient school can help children continue learning when floods or other hazards threaten normal routines. Safe drinking water and sanitation can reduce pressure on families during droughts and protect health. Strong healthcare, nutrition support and social protection can help children cope when climate shocks damage livelihoods or services. Clean energy and resilient infrastructure can further protect wellbeing.

The report urges governments, development partners and climate finance institutions to increase investment in these areas. It also asks for child-focused risk data and meaningful youth participation. Nepal's government has endorsed a declaration supporting child- and youth-responsive climate action, with the signed declaration to go to COP31.

A child-rights crisis occurs when environmental hazards prevent children from enjoying basic rights and opportunities. In Nepal, climate change and pollution threaten health, nutrition, education and protection. Floods, droughts, heatwaves and landslides can disrupt services that children depend on, making climate impacts part of everyday childhood rather than a distant future problem.

The injustice is clear in the report's contrast: children have contributed least to climate change, but they face its consequences directly. A flood can damage a school and remove learning, routines, friendships and safety. Drought and heat can increase pressure on water, nutrition and health. Pollution can expose millions of children to unhealthy air.

UNICEF representative Alice Akunga says children's rights and needs must guide climate policies, financing and adaptation. Nepal has endorsed the Declaration on Children, Youth and Climate Action. The next steps include resilient services, targeted finance, better risk data and meaningful participation by children and young people.