The child poverty dynamics in Senegal: Interview with UNICEF Representative in Senegal, Mariam Coulibaly Ndiaye

Q: What are the key findings and challenges facing children in Senegal addressed in the (Child Poverty and Disparities) study?
A: As in most countries in West and Central Africa, far too many children are highly vulnerable. Despite progress, poverty remains high, particularly in rural areas and children are more greatly affected by poverty than other segments of the population.
The study, undertaken in 2008, found that 3 out of 5 children in Senegal do not have access to essential services. Senegalese children suffer the most severe deprivation in matters of housing and education; in rural areas and in families where the head of the household has little or no education.
Children also face a limited access to health services. For instance, 21% of children have never received any vaccination. Yet, significant progress has been made in reducing child mortality since 1990.
A great leap has also been achieved in terms of access to primary school in the last 10 years – the pupils population almost doubled and reached parity between girls and boys. However, disparities persist, especially between rural and urban areas. And it is estimated that more than one fourth of primary school age are out of the formal school system and even when children are in school, drop-out rates are high, especially for the 20 percent poorest children.

Q: You mention an urban-rural divide. Can you tell more about this?
A: The study reveals the disparities and inequities between children living in different areas and in different households. For instance, it found than children in rural areas stand more chances not to be registered at birth, to work, to be married prematurely or to suffer from malnutrition.
And again, the hardship of children from the 20 per cent poorest households and children who live in families where the head of household has little or no education is greater.

Q: What are the policy implications to improve the situation of children?
A: The study gives a set of recommendations to address the deprivations and disparities affecting children. Among them, the need to target public expenditure and policies to make a greater impact for children is a priority.
For example, this means making investments more efficient in the education sector to address inequities and disparities and to ensure access to a quality education for all.
Also, it is essential to invest in innovative social safety nets, such as targeted cash transfer programmes, to promote child health and development and combat malnutrition. This is even more true in the context of the food, fuel and financial crisis.

Q: Can you tell us more about the impact of the global crisis on children?
A: Many families facing rising food and energy prices and a budget crunch may resort to coping strategies such as removing their children from school to work or care for relatives. They also reduce the variety and quality of their diet which often result in malnutrition.
Recent surveys conducted in rural and urban areas, in collaboration with the World Food Programme and Food and Agricultural Organization, have shown that child malnutrition has worsened in recent months.
The crisis has caused a slowdown in economic growth, cuts in social spending, a reduction in remittances from abroad and a decline in job opportunities - all of these factors could reverse the gains made in health, education and child protection. And this is not an option. A steady investment in the social sectors is required to mitigate the effects of the crisis.

Especially during this economic downturn, the Government of Senegal and its partners must strive to achieve education for all, better health and nutrition for every child.
In addition, it is also very important to improve the protection of children from abuse and violence. This will require the formulation of a national strategy for child protection, which includes promoting the reporting of abuses and rights violations and a better coordination of efforts made by the Government and its partners.
The focus on ending violence against children during the recent celebrations of the 20th Anniversary of the Convention on the rights of the child is one illustration of the government's commitment to improve the well-being of children.

The full report can be found here.

This story was extracted from and can be found at http://www.unicef.org/wcaro/2009_3827.html

Focal Point: Remy Pigois

UNICEF study on child poverty and disparities in Bangladesh released

November 25, 2009

The Key Findings from the UNICEF Study on Child Poverty and Disparities in Bangladesh have been launched in Dhaka. The document was launched by Dr. Shirin Sharmin Chowdhury, State Minister of Women and Children Affairs. Mr. Azizur Rahman, Chief Information Commissioner, Information Commission, Mr. Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan, Secretary, External Resource Division, Ministry of Planning, Mr. Shaikh Altaf Ali, Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and Carel de Rooy, UNICEF Representative, were also present at the event.

According to this new study about half of all Bangladeshi children are living in poverty, while about one in four children is deprived of at least four basic needs among the following: food, education, health, information, shelter, water and sanitation.

Furthermore, 64% of children in Bangladesh are deprived of sanitation, 52 per cent are deprived of information, 57 per cent are deprived of nutrition, 41 per cent are deprived of shelter, 16 per cent are deprived of health, and 8 per cent are deprived of education. One key determinant of child poverty is the level of the mother’s education: the higher the mother’s level of education, the lower the chance for the child to be affected by deprivation. The mother’s education also has a mitigating impact on the severity of the child’s deprivations.

According to Carel de Rooy, UNICEF Representative, child poverty in Bangladesh remains a grave concern. To achieve MDGs it is imperative that children be at the center of national programmes that address poverty such as safety nets and social protection interventions.

UNICEF is proposing a shift in the definition of poverty - away from a narrow measurement that addresses income exclusively to a definition that includes income poverty, deprivation and well-being. The study focuses on the multidimensional aspects of child poverty looking at deprivation in seven areas: food, education, health, information, shelter, water and sanitation.
The report was presented by Professor Abul Barkat, lead consultant for the national study, which was conducted by the Human Development Research Centre. UNICEF initiated the study as part of a Global initiative involving 46 countries in seven regions, working closely with government and non-governmental organizations to pool expertise, knowledge and evidence on children.

In Bangladesh, technical oversight was provided by a working group involving 10 different Ministries and multisectoral partners led by the Planning Commission.

The full report (English) can be found here. The “Key Findings” version that was launched can be found here.

Focal Point: Siping Wang

UNICEF ROSA Conference discussed emerging findings from child poverty studies

NEW: Conference Proceedings

The UNICEF Regional Office for South Asia recently held a regional conference entitled “Achieving Child Wellbeing and Equity in South Asia – Towards a New Understanding of Child Poverty and Deprivation,” in Dhaka, November 1-3, 2009. The conference brought together over 70 policymakers, researchers, UN agency representatives, civil society representatives, donors, and UNICEF staff from seven of the eight South Asian countries participating in the Global Study on Child Poverty and Disparities. The conference had the overall objective of exploring key findings from the country child poverty studies and discussing policy options available to South Asian governments in tackling child poverty, deprivations and disparities in a multi-dimensional and synergistic manner.

The conference was marked by a high level of representation from Governments, which included the Minister for Planning and the State Minister of Child Affairs, Bangladesh, the Deputy Minister of Health and Family, The Maldives, the Vice Chair of the Planning Commission, Nepal, as well as other senior economists and policymakers from Planning Commissions and from line ministries responsible for children.

The three days of discussions reviewed a number of important findings on child poverty and deprivations, and intra-country outcome disparities across income quintiles, socially excluded groups, and geographic regions. Emerging issues not covered in the methodology – relating to climate change, recurrent natural disasters, conflict, migration, urbanisation, drug abuse and extremism, among others were also discussed. Several country studies and the regional synthesis presented policy ideas and reviewed innovations from South Asia, such as the revision of the definition of poverty itself, or new initiatives on a child grant. It also aired the idea of proposing that child poverty be integrated into a review of the MDGs.

A key outcome of the meeting was a firm commitment by participating countries, including the government counterparts, to mainstream the findings and policy proposals from the studies into national development plans as well as action plans for children.

Most studies will be completed and launched in 2010.

Materials from the Conference can be found here.

Focal Point: Gabriele Koehler. For more information on the conference, please contact Anoop Singh Gurung and/or Gabriele Koehler.

UNICEF China co-sponsored strategic policy seminars on child poverty this October

First, jointly with the China Development Research Foundation, UNICEF co-sponsored a high-level strategic international policy seminar on Anti-poverty and Early Childhood Development on 29-30 October, 2009. This seminar engaged Nobel Prize Laureates Amartya Sen and Joseph Stiglitz; government leaders including Yin Li - Vice minister of Health, Wu Degang - Assistant Minister of Education, WANG Guoliang - Vice Minister of the State Council Leading Group Office of Poverty Alleviation and Development; several foreign senior government officials from countries including Vietnam, Mexico, Thailand, and Korea; and a number of top international and domestic experts on child poverty.

Second, jointly with the State Council Leading Group Office Poverty Alleviation and Development, UNICEF co-organized the Child Poverty and Development Training Seminar on 31 October – 1 November, 2009. This seminar aimed at contributing to strengthening the emphasis on child poverty in the Government's Poverty Reduction Strategy, and at influencing the design of China’s 10-Year Poverty Reduction Program (2011-2020). Both seminars contributed to promoting understanding of the multiple dimensions of poverty and remaining child poverty challenges in China. Expert contributions from UNICEF staff, and partners were widely recognized and appreciated by government counterparts and partners in China.

Focal Point: For more information, please contact Hana Brixi

Viet Nam high-level conference: Translating child poverty research into concrete policy options - November 26-27, 2009

Viet Nam has made tremendous progress in reducing its poverty rate in a remarkably short time. With the Government now preparing its next Socio-Economic Development Strategy (2011-2020) and Socio-Economic Development Plan (2011-2015), it is now very timely for the Government to revise its poverty reduction approach in order to ensure it is relevant and appropriate to reducing/eliminating all forms of poverty, including multi-dimensional child poverty.

The Government of Viet Nam, under the leadership of the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs and the Ministry of Planning and Investment, together with UNICEF will organize a high level conference entitled “Rethinking child poverty: what policy options for Viet Nam?” in Hanoi on November 26-27, 2009. This conference seeks to reach high-level consensus and support to integrate a multi-dimensional child poverty approach into the national policy response in Viet Nam, with a particular focus on socio-economic development plans, national poverty reduction policies and strategies in the country. It will bring together new evidence and analysis from Viet Nam and other countries and encourage focused discussion around key policy issues and options on how policies can most effectively eliminate child poverty and reduce disparities in an integrated and comprehensive manner, especially in the public policy process of planning, targeting, budgeting, monitoring and evaluation and analysis.

The conference expects to contribute to a common understanding among policy makers of the new multidimensional approach to and measurements of child poverty; better knowledge of opportunities and constraints/gaps for reducing child poverty and disparities within Viet Nam's existing policy initiatives relevant to poverty reduction; concrete ideas and recommendations to strengthen Viet Nam's efforts on reduction of child poverty. The conference program will first address the current State of the Art on conceptualising and measuring child poverty, globally and in Viet Nam. It will then examine the gaps in existing policies with a focus on socio-economic and poverty reduction policies in Viet Nam. The conference will also discuss relevant international experiences and good examples, which can assist Viet Nam in addressing remaining challenges in order to achieve the necessary policy changes to reduce child poverty. It will feature presentations and discussion by both international and national experts in various areas.

Focal Points: For more information on the conference, or to express your interest in participating, please contact Geeta Narayan at gnarayan@unicef.org or Paul Quarles van Ufford at pqvanufford@unicef.org

More countries joining the Global Study on Child Poverty and Disparities

The number of countries participating in the Global Study on Child Poverty and Disparities is growing, currently there are 49 countries that form part of this initiative. The latest countries to officially join are Vanuatu, Lesotho and the Indian Ocean Islands of Comoros, Seychelles, La Reunion and Mauritius which alongside Madagascar are under the guidance of the Indian Ocean Commission.

These new countries as well as the others are reminded of resources available to them, such as peer review of their reports, joining discussions on the Child Poverty Network and the common Global Study Visual Identity that can be applied to their reports and other communication material.

We welcome these new countries on board!

Focal Point: Sharmila Kurukulasuriya

Peter Townsend: April 6, 1928 - June 7, 2009

[From UNICEF's Press Center]

Professor Peter Townsend, a champion for children everywhere, passed away on 7 June 2009. Until his life’s end, Professor Townsend sustained his outrage at the inequalities in the world, inequalities that condemn millions of children to suffer deprivations that violate their basic rights to survival and development. He advocated fiercely and continuously for the right of every child, whether from a poor country or a rich country, to social security and an adequate standard of living. He used his considerable intellect to research innovative sources of financing for a universal child benefit—a grant for all children everywhere—and seized every opportunity to press the measure as both morally just and economically feasible.

In the course of his life, Professor Townsend influenced many people and institutions, but the research he led, with David Gordon of Bristol University, Child Poverty in the Developing World, (2003) transformed the way UNICEF and many of its partners both understood and measured the poverty suffered by children. This innovative method of measuring deprivations: the extent to which a child is unable to realize his or her fundamental rights to health, food, education, water, sanitation, shelter and information, has exposed policy-makers all over the world to a new understanding of child poverty and inequalities. As a consequence, children are more visible in poverty reduction policies and debates. UNICEF’s Global Study on Child Poverty and Disparities, has been inspired to a large extent by Professor Townsend’s work.

For more on Peter Townsend and his work:

•University of Bristol. List of Peter Townsend Publications 1948 - 2003
•D. Gordon, S. Nandy, C. Pantazis, S. Pemberton and P. Townsend (2003). Child Poverty in the Developing World. UK: The Policy Press
•UNDP in Focus (2004). Children and Poverty
•London School of Economics tribute to Peter Townsend
•The Guardian Obituary