HARARE, Zimbabwe - Child rape has increased 42 per cent in Zimbabwe, the United Nations children's agency said today, linking worsening child abuse and domestic violence to family tensions caused by the nation's economic meltdown.

The UN Children's Fund launched a new "Stand Up and Speak Out" campaign calling on children, relatives and church and other groups to fight what it called the "staggering statistics on the unspeakable evils of child abuse."

UNICEF said the number of cases of rape of minors reported to police surged from 2,192 in 2003 to 3,112 in 2006.

Many other cases likely went unreported in a climate of secrecy and denial, it said.

Dr. Festo Kavishe, the agency's chief representative in Zimbabwe, said in the nation's economic crisis social workers reported adults unable to provide normal care, food and schooling vented their anger on children.