The emergency appeal was made to address the immediate needs of the flood stricken people in the next six to eight weeks, said the United Nations Children's Fund in its statement.

The appeal aims at saving children from the rising tide of water-borne diseases and acute respiratory infection (ARI); providing nutritious food, and creating learning spaces for them in the worst affected areas, the press release added.

"Bangladeshi children living on the edge urgently need attention to save them from the worst ravages of flood. It is important to provide them with safe drinking water, adequate sanitation, nutritious food and life saving medicine," the statement quoted APB Senagama, officer in charge of Unicef Bangladesh, as saying.

Unicef appeals for critical interventions in the key areas of health and nutrition, water and environmental sanitation, child protection, and education, the press release continued.

A large number of children and women, who have taken refuge in makeshift shelters, are dangerously exposed to risks of diseases and death as floodwaters continued to slowly recede across the country.

According to latest reports, nearly 30 million people in 259 upazilas under 43 districts have been affected by the floods. Unions hit by floods numbered 2,306 covering an area of 26,529 square miles. Government has opened 4,830 flood shelters where 2, 88,079 people have taken refuge. Primary schools affected by floods add up to 26,866.

Unicef in support of the government has been providing assistance in cash and kind. Its response has been focused on ensuring the provision of safe drinking water, some sanitation facilities for the affected population and essential healthcare to the affected children and women.

To help the government respond to devastating floods, Unicef has provided a package of essential supplies such as water purifying tablets, intravenous fluid, oral re-hydration salt, safe drinking water containers and bleaching powder to flood shelters and health centres.

Unicef feels the relief supplies worth US$ 200,000 that it has provided so far is inadequate considering the magnitude of the problem, Naseem-ur-Rahman, chief of information and advocacy section of Unicef Bangladesh told The Daily Star yesterday referring to the rationale behind the global appeal.

Rahman said, "We're here dealing with the issue of survival of children and reports we're receiving from flood shelters are somewhat disturbing particularly those on the health condition of the children."