The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) reported on Wednesday that more than 30,000 child migrants crossed the notably perilous Darién Gap spanning the Panama-Colombia border in the first four months of this year. This is a 40 percent increase from that of the same period a year ago.

According to UNICEF, almost 2,000 of the 30,000 child migrants crossed the Darién Gap without their families. An estimated 160,000 children and adolescents are predicted to cross the area this year. Many of these migrants are expected to require critical humanitarian assistance.

UNICEF Deputy Executive Director Ted Chaiban highlighted the danger of child migrants crossing the Darién Gap and the importance of adequate funding to provide them with humanitarian assistance. Chaiban said:

The Darién Gap is no place for children. Many children have died on this arduous, dangerous journey. Women have given birth while en route, bringing new life into the world in the most challenging of circumstances. Many of those who survive the journey arrive sick, hungry, and dehydrated, often with wounds or infections and in desperate need of support … The dangers to children and their unmet needs are increasing as we speak. We need to continue to ensure that no child is left behind. If the response is underfunded, the reach will be limited.

The Darién Gap comprises over sixty miles of steep terrain, dense rainforest and swampland. While it is known as one of the most dangerous routes in the world, a large number of migrants are left with no option but to cross the region due to crackdowns on alternative routes by air and sea. Migrants also face the risks of disease and abuse from gangs in the area. Hundreds of people are believed to have disappeared in the Darién Gap.

UNICEF has supported child migrants in the Darién Gap since 2018. In addition to providing children protection and gender-based violence services at hotspots along the migration route, the organization also supports ten host communities there.

This is not the first time migration issues within the Darién Gap have been highlighted. On April 3, Human Rights Watch stated in a report that Panama and Colombia failed to protect hundreds of thousands of migrants and asylum seekers crossing the area. The report urged the governments of Panama and Colombia to work with humanitarian organizations and local communities to protect the rights of migrants and asylum seekers crossing through the area. On September 8, 2023, director of Panama’s National Migration Institute Samira Gozaine and Panamanian Security Minister Juan Manuel Pino stated that Panama will increase deportations of irregular migrants as the migration flow increases. While Panama has built reception centers to process migrants at the border, its resources have been stretched due to an increase in the number of migrants.