UNITED NATIONS, March 18 (Xinhua) -- UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) Executive Director Henrietta Fore on Wednesday stressed the importance of child protection in face of the novel coronavirus.

"Our life-saving work to provide children with health, education, nutrition and protection has never been more critical," said Fore in a statement. "With millions of children uprooted, affected by wars, dying from preventable causes, out of school, or missing out on essential vaccines, the need for support has never been greater."

UNICEF is working to help prevent the spread of the virus among communities in the affected countries. It is sharing accurate information on how to keep families safe, providing hygiene and medical kits to schools and health clinics, and mitigating the impact of the outbreak on children's access to health, education and social services, she said.

"Now more than ever, we count on our donors to continue supporting our mission for those with nothing and no one, despite these difficult times," said Fore.