"10.5 Million Children Worldwide Lost Parents Due to COVID-19"

"One in 50 People in Southeast Asia and Africa"

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Yuri Kim] A study has revealed that the number of children who have lost at least one parent due to COVID-19 has exceeded 10 million.

An international research team composed of experts from the University of Oxford, the World Health Organization (WHO), and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published a paper containing these findings on the 6th (local time) in the latest issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association - Pediatrics.

Based on an analysis of excess mortality from January to May 2020 caused by COVID-19, it is estimated that approximately 10.5 million children worldwide have lost one or both parents. Excess mortality refers to the number of deaths exceeding what would be expected if COVID-19 had not spread.

By region, the proportion of children who lost parents was highest in Southeast Asia (4.2 million) and Africa (2.5 million), with about one in every 50 children affected. This rate is about three times higher compared to North and South America (1.5 million), where the ratio was about one in every 150 children losing at least one parent.

The researchers identified India (3.49 million), Indonesia (660,000), Egypt (450,000), Nigeria (430,000), and Pakistan (410,000) as the countries most severely impacted.

Lead author Susan Hillis, a professor at the University of Oxford, stated that children in countries with low COVID-19 vaccination rates and high birth rates showed higher proportions of parental loss. She emphasized, "If children are not cared for and supported, the social structure itself may weaken in the future," urging world leaders to provide economic and educational support to children who have lost their parents.