Catherine Russell, UNICEF’s executive director: ‘Cuts in international aid will have an impact on children; there’s no way around it’

Catherine Russell, 64, took over as UNICEF’s executive director in February of 2022, just as the world was beginning to see the light after the Covid-19 pandemic. But days later, Russia began its invasion of Ukraine, triggering a European refugee crisis of great magnitude.

In the three years since then, other wars have erupted or reignited, in Gaza, Sudan, Myanmar and other places. The planet is now experiencing the highest number of active conflicts since the mid-20th century. “It’s literally one problem after another,” the New Jersey-born Russel laments. “Adults are [doing the fighting] and children are suffering.” And, in the midst of this humanitarian storm, various high-income countries are cutting off international development aid.

Spain is one of a handful of countries that, instead of cutting back, plans to increase its financial support for UNICEF. In early May, Russell met with Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez in Madrid, to thank him in person. “We love Spain. The government here is a consistent supporter of the work that we do and we’re really grateful for that, because it’s one of the few governments that’s actually trying to increase [its] contribution to UNICEF,” she summarized, after meeting with Sánchez.

Russell spoke with EL PAÍS at a hotel in Madrid.

Question. In this context of global upheaval, it’s a bad time to be a child.

Answer. It’s a very difficult time to be a child. The biggest challenge is conflict, which we see in so many places. We estimate that hundreds of millions of children are either living in conflict zones, or fleeing from conflict zones. The worst thing is that children are at physical risk in a conflict setting… but the other [troubling factor] is that children really depend on government services. They depend on education and healthcare from the government. And those are almost always disrupted by conflict. Several years [of schooling] are lost, they don’t have access to clean water. It’s a big proportion of their life.

Q. With more conflicts than ever since World War II, is there reason for hope?

A. You know, we’re in the business of children, right? So, we always have hope. But it’s a particularly worrying situation for children. As I said, they are very vulnerable. Now, you see conflict [in which] communities and civilians are at such incredible risk. So, I can’t say that I’m optimistic about the situation.

Q. One of the biggest crises is in Gaza, where aid is blocked by Israel. What solution does UNICEF propose?

A. It’s a terrible situation. Thousands of children killed and thousands of children suffering. We’re worried about the nutrition situation there. We have UNICEF staff on the ground who have been just incredibly courageous.

[Gaining] access to deliver aid has been very difficult. For a period, we were able to provide a lot of medical supplies, food, and water. But when the fighting started again, it was impossible. It’s one of the worst contexts in terms of the international community’s ability to reach those in need.

Q. After more than two months without aid reaching the people in Gaza, are there any negotiations with Israel and Hamas to let the aid in?

A. There are many talks underway, [as well as] many requests from the humanitarian sector for more access. So far, we’re not making any progress. But we’re continuing to push as much as we can.

Q. Sudan is another horrific situation. What’s happening there?

A. Sudan, in terms of numbers, is the largest humanitarian crisis in the world. And it’s shockingly bad: we’ve already seen famine in some parts of the country. The violence is horrific. UNICEF put out a report two months ago about sexual violence against children there, including [against] children under the age of one. In terms of scale, 17 million of the 19 million children [have been] out of school for two years. [And yet], you can’t find a mention of [the situation] in the newspaper or on the TV.

Q. You were there a year ago. What did you see?

A. I was in Port Sudan, where we had a really impressive facility. It was a camp and UNICEF was providing a whole range of services there. I walked into a tent and there were maybe, I don’t know, 20 kids [of] different ages sitting with headphones on, all looking at tablets. The women there told me that [there are online] programs that can adapt to where the child is in terms of their education [and depending on what language they speak].

I met a group of girls there. I asked them: “What do you think about your future?” These are girls who had already been uprooted several times by the violence, [yet] they were still optimistic. They were telling me they were going to be doctors or engineers. That gives me so much hope and encourages me to keep going. But I also know that the likelihood of their dreams coming true is really low.

Adults [are doing the] fighting and these children are the ones who suffer. And I find that just really heartbreaking.

Q. Do you think the international community is forgetting the suffering of children in these contexts?

A. There are conversations at the UN, but I think the world struggles to pay attention to too many things at once. There’s too much going on right now. [For many], these conflicts seem so far away; they’re not on [the general public’s] mind. Part of the challenge is trying to get some attention. When people hear what’s happening, they respond.

Q. And what do you think of global leaders, those who must make the decisions?

A. They need to do better.

Q. At the beginning of your term, you were very concerned about girls in Afghanistan. Three years later, how can you tell them that humanity hasn’t forgotten them?

A. It’s a very horrible situation for girls there. And every step along the way, the authorities have further constrained the opportunities for girls and the ability of girls and women to participate in society: to go to school, be outside, work…

We continue to try to provide education for girls [in Afghanistan], but it’s a challenge. [Afghan women and girls] have so much to contribute, so much to offer… we’ll never give up on those girls.

We’ve been trying to work [on training] women in the healthcare sector. At least for now, [the Taliban] is letting women work in that space, because they provide healthcare to other women. So, there are some places where we can work and we’ll continue to try.

Q. International aid funds are declining, especially with the cuts at USAID. How are they affecting your operations?

A. Last year, we began to see cuts in development assistance. That decline accelerated this year. It’s worrying. Many [high-income] countries — with three or four exceptions — have been cutting aid. Spain is one of [the countries] that has increased its contributions and I’m grateful for that.

At UNICEF, we have diverse sources of funding, but [the cuts are] affecting us. We estimate [that there’s been] a 20% decrease in the funds we receive. So, we have to adjust. We’ve always tried to be good stewards of the resources we receive, but now, we’re looking for any way to save [money], without affecting our programs. We’re restructuring the organization a bit. [However], in the end, it’s going to have an impact on children. There’s no way around it. It will result in more children who are not fed, who are not educated.

Q. At the moment, more and more countries are questioning the usefulness of multilateralism, including the effectiveness of the UN.

A. We’re at an inflection point in the world, where there are questions being raised about the multilateral system overall. And I think the question countries and voters and human beings have to think about is: what kind of world do they want to live in? Do they want to live in a world where it’s sort of breaking down into different groups? Or do we want to support and reinvigorate the multilateral system that has served us quite well since the end of World War II?

We want to have [a system] in place so that countries can resolve their conflicts, [so that] they can work together. And I think [this] multilateral system is being challenged.

Q. We see that rich, developed countries don’t respect children’s rights, especially along their borders. How do we address these violations?

A. If you have a child — if you know a child — [or] if you have a niece or nephew, you want everything for that child, right? You want them to be healthy. You want them to be educated. You want them to grow up in a safe environment [and] have opportunities. The children [who are being abused] are no different. They have every right to have the same life and world that every child has in richer countries or safer countries, or places where it’s more stable. They’re our collective future. If we don’t take care of them, the world is not going to be a pretty place growing up.

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