Africa and Asia most affected by lack of drinking water in children's schools

A recent UNICEF report shows that 293m children worldwide did not have drinking water in their schools in 2023. Six African and four Asian countries make up the top ten, with Ethiopia and Nigeria occupying first and second positions, respectively, with 33.2m and 29m children.

The top five countries account for 42% of the total affected population.

Source:

UNICEF

Period:

2023
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About 11M lives have been saved in Africa through tuberculosis treatment, which made up 23% of the total lives saved globally
  • Africa not only had high tuberculosis treatment success for people without HIV (5.9M lives saved), but also for 5.1M people with HIV.
  • With over 19 million people without HIV and 910,000 with HIV treated, South-East Asia leads in numbers.
  • TB treatment saved 10 million lives in the Western Pacific region.
  • Globally, 41 million out of 47.8 million lives saved were of people without HIV, showing that TB remains a major health threat even outside HIV-affected populations.
  • With just 1.2M lives saved each, both Europe and the Americas had relatively low numbers.

63.8% of Rwanda's parliament are women as of 2024 - highest in the world
  • Rwanda is a global leader in gender-inclusive governance, with nearly two-thirds (63.8%) of its parliament occupied by women.
  • Latin American nations dominate the list, with Cuba (55.7%), Nicaragua (55.0%), and Mexico (50.2%) showing strong female political participation.
  • The UAE stands out as the only Middle Eastern country in the top 10, achieving 50% female representation.
  • Despite being a high-income European nation, Monaco has the lowest representation among the top 10, with women holding only 45.8% of seats.

Seven states accounted for 96.6% of the suspected diphtheria cases reported in Nigeria between 2022 and 2025
  • With 24,062 cases, Kano accounts for the highest number of suspected diphtheria cases, making up a significant portion of the total outbreak in Nigeria.
  • Yobe recorded 5,330 cases, while Katsina had 3,939 cases, reinforcing the concentration of diphtheria in northern states.
  • Bauchi and Borno report similar case counts, with 3,066 and 3,035 cases, respectively.
  • Kaduna (777 cases) and Jigawa (364 cases) report fewer cases but remain part of the seven states contributing to 96.6% of the outbreak.
  • Other states combined report 1,405 cases, showing that diphtheria is largely a regional issue.
  • Northern states dominate the case count, signaling potential regional healthcare and vaccination disparities.

Women-led businesses in Africa receive only a fraction of available capital despite high entrepreneurship rates​​
  • Women-led businesses in Africa raise significantly less funding than male-led counterparts. In 2017, female-led startups secured only $1 for every $25 raised by male-led startups, and this disparity persisted through 2024.
  • Despite making up 26% of all entrepreneurs in Africa, women receive less than 10% of total investment capital.
  • Women in Africa face structural financing challenges, including limited collateral, fewer investment networks, and biases in lending decisions.
  • While some countries have introduced financial inclusion programmes, overall access to credit for women remains disproportionately low.
  • The rise of women-focused venture funds, such as WIC Capital and Janngo, signals a slow but emerging shift towards more equitable funding distribution.
  • If this trend continues, Africa risks stifling economic growth by not fully leveraging the entrepreneurial potential of women-led businesses.​​

Nigeria halved under-5 mortality from 325.2 to 107.2 per 1,000 live births from 1960 to 2022
  • Ghana's under-5 mortality rate at 42.3 deaths per 1,000 live births, still higher than the SDG target of 25 deaths per 1,000 live births.
  • Cape Verde achieved the most dramatic reduction in under-5 mortality rates, cutting its rate by over 93%, from 174.8 in 1960 to 12.3 in 2022, the lowest in West Africa.
  • Sierra Leone had the highest under-5 mortality rate in 1960, at 390.1 deaths per 1,000 live births, marking it as one of the most challenging places for child survival in the region at the time.
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Africa’s share of unregistered children is nearly double that of South Asia and over four times the rest of the world combined
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  • South Asia follows with 32%, while the rest of the world accounts for just 12%.
  • Africa’s share of unregistered children is nearly double that of South Asia and over four times that of the rest of the world.
  • This disparity underscores the urgent need for improved civil registration systems in high-impact regions.

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