Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Women and Child Affairs has raised concerns over potential child trafficking and exploitation in the aftermath of Cyclone Ditwah, which struck the island on November 28, causing widespread floods and landslides.
A ministry spokesperson said several children had been affected by the disaster, with some losing one or both parents.
Authorities are in the process of collecting precise figures and plan to release updated data in the coming days. “We see attempts at child trafficking and exploitation.
One should be careful not to use images of affected children on social media,” the spokesperson added.
Minister of Women and Child Affairs Savithri Paulraj told the Daily Mirror that 87 children had lost either one or both parents, and agencies are currently verifying the numbers.
The cyclone left an estimated 2.3 million people in flooded areas, more than half of them women, according to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
New UNDP geospatial analysis shows that floodwaters inundated over 1.1 million hectares, roughly 20 percent of Sri Lanka’s land area, and caused severe damage to homes, infrastructure, and essential services.
The analysis also highlighted that over half of those living in the affected areas were already facing vulnerabilities such as unstable incomes, high debt, and limited capacity to cope with disasters, raising concerns about long-term setbacks for the most at-risk communities.
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