New York: Europe and the Arabs
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) said that some of the world's richest countries saw a sharp rise in child poverty rates between 2014 and 2021.
This is contained in a report issued by the UNICEF-run Innocenti Global Research and Foresight Office, entitled “Report Card No. 18: Child Poverty in the Midst of Wealth.” The report is the latest in a series that highlights the well-being of children in OECD countries and the European Union. According to what was stated in the daily news bulletin of the United Nations, a copy of which we received this morning
The report revealed that Poland and Slovenia achieve the best results in efforts to address child poverty, followed by Latvia and the Republic of Korea. But it also showed that some of the richest countries are falling behind, at the bottom of the rankings.
The report finds that despite an overall decline in poverty rates of about 8 percent in 40 countries between 2014 and 2021, there are still more than 69 million children living in families that were earning less than 60 percent of the national median income by the end of the year. Year 2021.
Persistent and devastating effects
The effects of poverty on children are "persistent and devastating," said Bo Viktor Nylund, director of UNICEF's Innocenti Global Research and Foresight Office.
He added that for most children, this means they may grow up without enough nutritious food, clothing, school supplies or a warm place to call home. It prevents the realization of rights, and can lead to deteriorating physical and mental health.
UNICEF said the consequences of poverty can last a lifetime, as children experiencing poverty have a lower chance of completing school and earning lower wages when they become adults. In some countries, a person born in a deprived area is likely to live eight to nine years less than a person born in an affluent area, according to the report.

Stark differences
The report indicated that in 38 countries for which data are available, children living in single-parent families are three times more likely to live in poverty than other children, and that children with disabilities and from ethnic minorities are at higher risk than average.
The report indicated that the numbers showed that the period from 2012 to 2019 witnessed stable economic growth in that group of countries, which represents an opportunity to recover from the effects of the recession in the period 2008-2010. But he said that while a number of countries had succeeded in reducing child poverty over this period, some of the richest countries had seen the biggest declines.
The report also showed that countries with similar levels of national income, such as Slovenia and Spain, had stark differences in child poverty rates, reaching 10 percent in Slovenia and 28 percent in Spain.
The report confirmed that it is possible to improve the living conditions of children regardless of the country’s wealth, as, for example, Poland, Slovenia, Latvia and Lithuania - which are not among the richest countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and the European Union - were able to achieve a significant reduction in child poverty rates, by 38%. In Poland, and 31% in other countries.
He added that five high-income countries, including the United Kingdom, France, Iceland, Norway and Switzerland, saw the largest increases in the number of children living in families suffering from financial hardship since 2014.
Suggested actions
The report called on governments and stakeholders to urgently take a number of actions to eradicate child poverty.
Among these measures are expanding social protection for children, including child and family benefits to supplement family income, as well as ensuring that all children have access to quality basic services, such as childcare and free education, which are essential for their well-being.
The UNICEF report also called for the creation of jobs with adequate wages and family-friendly policies, such as paid parental leave, to support parents and caregivers in balancing work and care responsibilities.
Other measures proposed by Innocenti's office include ensuring that there are measures adapted to the specific needs of minority groups and single-parent families, to facilitate access to social protection, basic services and decent work, and to reduce inequality.
Director of the UNICEF-run Innocenti Global Research and Foresight Office, Bo Viktor Nylund, commented that the cash benefits have an immediate impact in alleviating poverty.
He stressed that decision makers can support families by setting priorities and increasing spending on child and family benefits, adding, “A lot can be learned from the successes achieved by various countries. How we use this learning will determine how effectively we ensure the well-being of children today and in the future.”