Why Pacific children will be affected by COVID-19 for years to come

While most Pacific nations have avoided large outbreaks of COVID-19, the economic fallout from the pandemic has been devastating leaving many concerned the region will not recover without urgent support.

This picture taken on November 19, 2018 show children jumping in a small pond to beat the heat on the outskirts of Port Moresby. Source: AFP/getty image

A World Vision report released on Monday details how job losses, for unaffordability and family violence have all increased because of the pandemic. 

The children of the Solomon Islands may seem blissfully unaware of the pandemic, but COVID-19 is affecting them in ways that could impact their lives for years to come.

With borders closed for nearly two years, economies across the Pacific are in tatters.

Many of the region’s traditional drivers of  growth including tourism, agriculture, and labour mobility, have all but dried up.

And as a result, World Vision's Vanuatu Director Kendra Derousseau says the country is facing a huge job shortage.