The complex humanitarian crisis keeps deteriorating in Mali. An estimated 8.8 million people (over 1 in 3 Malians) required humanitarian assistance in 2023 – a 17% increase since 2022. The conflict triggers large-scale population displacements, particularly affecting children.
In a June 2022 report on Children and armed conflict, the United Nations Secretary General verified 994 grave violations against 648 children in 2021 – recruited into armed groups, arrested for their alleged association with armed groups, or killed (73) and maimed (128).
UNICEF, the UN’s Child Protection agency and a longstanding EU humanitarian partner, has been supporting unaccompanied and separated children released from armed groups in Mali’s Segou region. The conflict causes numerous traumas for internally displaced children.
With EU humanitarian support, children exiting armed forces and groups, as well as survivors of sexual violence, receive holistic care. They are supported with individual or community-based psychosocial support in dedicated safe spaces with access to food and hygiene, education and recreational activities.
