Despite global progress, 1 in 12 children worldwide live in countries where their prospects today are worse than those of their parents, according to a UNICEF analysis conducted for World Children’s Day. According to the analysis, 180 million children live in 37 countries where they are more likely to live in extreme poverty, be out of school, or be killed by violent death than children living in those countries were 20 years ago.
“While the last generation has seen vast, unprecedented gains in living standards for most of the world’s children, the fact that a forgotten minority of children have been excluded from this – through no fault of their own or those of their families – is a travesty” said Laurence Chandy, UNICEF Director of Data, Research and Policy.
“It is the hope of every parent, everywhere, to provide greater opportunities for their children than they themselves enjoyed when they were young. This World Children’s Day, we have to take stock of how many children are instead seeing opportunities narrow and their prospects diminish,” added Chandy.
“World Children’s Day is about listening to us and giving us a say in our future. And our message is clear: We need to speak up for ourselves, and when we do, the world needs to listen,” said Jaden Michael, 14-year-old activist and UNICEF child advocate.
According to Olayinka Laggah, National Commission for Children, with funding from Save the Children, “We have engaged community leaders to talk about child rights and reinforce that as community leaders they have the responsibility to ensure that children are protected and the rights of children are observed.”
A separate UNICEF survey of children aged 9-18 in 14 countries also released today shows that children are deeply concerned about global issues affecting their peers and them personally, including violence, terrorism, conflict, climate change, unfair treatment of refugees and migrants, and poverty.
Key findings from the survey include:
*Half of children across all 14 countries report feeling disenfranchised when asked how they felt when decisions are made that affect children around the world.
*Children in India report feeling the most empowered with 52 per cent of children believing their voices are heard and can help their country and that their opinions can affect the future of their country.
Children across all 14 countries identified terrorism, poor education and poverty as the biggest issues they wanted world leaders to take action on.
*Across all 14 countries, violence against children was the biggest concern with 67% reporting worrying a lot. Children in Brazil, Nigeria, and Mexico are the most worried about violence affecting children, with 82%, 77% and 74% respectively worrying a lot about this issue.
*Children across all 14 countries are equally concerned about terrorism and poor education with 65% of all children surveyed worrying a lot about these issues.
*Children in Brazil and Nigeria are the most concerned about poor quality education or lack of access, with more than 8 in 10 children worrying about this affecting children across the world.
*Nearly half of children (45%) across 14 countries do not trust their adults and world leaders to make good decisions for children. Brazil has the highest proportion of children (81%) who do not trust leaders, followed by South Africa at 69%.
*Watching TV featured as the number one hobby of choice in 7 out of 14 of the countries.
BM/20/11/17
Tuesday November 21, 2017.