UNITED NATIONS

According to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) floods and hurricanes have seriously damaged or destroyed tens of thousands of schools and other educational facilities in Asia, Africa and Central America. In China alone, about 48,766 schools were destroyed due to the worst floods in four decades. This year, monsoon season in Bangladesh lasted three times longer than normal, damaging nearly 1,400 schools. Similarly, in the Juba valley of Somalia, over 100 schools were affected by rains. In Central America, about 1,419 schools were hit by Hurricane Georges and the havoc caused by Hurricane Mitch is still being evaluated.

More than 500 children from 15 countries came together at the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya, to urge world leaders to protect the environment. The meet was attended by delegates -- children between 10 and 12 years of age. The focus during the discussions was on environmental problems such as 'Wildlife in Danger'. "You have started to take the future of environment in your own hand," S Kakakhel, UNEP's deputy executive director, told the children present at the meet.