Child Poverty in Developing Countries

Child Poverty in Developing Countries

What is poverty?

The state or condition of having little or no money, goods or means of support; condition of being poor. Those in poverty usually live on less than $2.00 a day.

Did You Know?

• According to UNICEF, 22,000 children die each day in some of the poorest villages on earth due to poverty 
• Around 27-28% of all children in developing countries are estimated to be underweight or stunted.
• Approximately 72 million children of primary school age in the developing world were not in school in 2005; 57 per cent of them were girls.
• There are roughly 2.2 billion children in the world however it has been discovered that there are 1 billion children in poverty.
• Within the developing world 1 in 3 children are without adequate shelter, 1 in 5 have no access to safe water and 1 in 7 have no access to health services.
• 1.4 million die each year from lack of access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation. 2.2 million children die each year because they are not immunised.
• 15 million children are orphaned due to HIV/AIDS.
• Over 121 million children are out of education because their families are unable to afford it due to poverty.
• Almost half the world - over three billion people - live on less than $2.50 a day
• 1.1 billion people in developing countries have inadequate access to water
• 2.6 billion people lack basic sanitation
• 1.8 million child deaths each year are a result of diarrhoea 
• 1 in 3 children in developing countries are without adequate shelter
• 1 in 5 children in developing countries have no access to safe water
• 1 in 7 children in developing countries have no access to health services

Impacts of Poverty

Physical Impacts:
Children and teens living in poorer communities are at increase risk for a wide range of physical health problems. Some of these include:

• Low birth weight
• Poor nutrition which is manifested in the following ways:
• Inadequate food which can lead to food insecurity/hunger
• Lack of access to healthy foods and areas for play or sports which can lead to childhood overweight or obesity

• Chronic conditions such as asthma, anaemia, and pneumonia
• Risky behaviours such as smoking or engaging in early sexual activity
• Exposure to environmental contaminants, e.g., lead paint and toxic waste dumps
• Exposure to violence in their communities which can lead to trauma, injury, disability, and mortality
• High birth rate in LEDC’s (Less Economically Developed Countries) often results in high child mortality rates.
• Substandard housing or homelessness.
• Inadequate nutrition and food insecurity.
• Inadequate child care or lack of access to health care

Social Impacts:

• Risky behaviours such as smoking or engaging in early sexual activity.
• Academic outcomes of children are depleting due to poor grades or drop a student dropping out.

Emotional Impacts:

• Chronic stress associated with living in poverty has been shown to adversely affect children’s concentration and memory which may impact their ability to learn.
• Some behavioural problems may include impulsiveness, difficulty getting along with peers, aggression, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and conduct disorder.
• Emotional problems may include feelings of anxiety, depression, and low self-esteem.
• Poverty and economic hardship is particularly difficult for parents who may experience chronic stress, depression, marital distress and as a result will exhibit harsher parenting behaviours which can cause mental trauma amongst many children.

• Unsafe neighbourhoods may expose low-income children to violence which can cause a number of psychosocial difficulties.
• Violence exposure can result in a child to become violent in the future placing them at greater risk of injury, mortality and entry into the juvenile justice system.

Academic Impacts: 

• Poverty has a particularly adverse effect on the academic outcomes of children, especially during early childhood.  
• Chronic stress associated with living in poverty has been shown to adversely affect children’s concentration and memory which may impact their ability to learn.  
• The National Centre for Education Statistics reports that in 2008, the dropout rate of students living in low-income families was about four and one-half times greater than the rate of children from higher-income families (8.7 percent versus 2.0 percent).  
• The academic achievement gap for poorer youth is particularly pronounced for low-income African American and Hispanic children compared with their more affluent White peers.  
• Under resourced schools in poorer communities struggle to meet the learning needs of their students and aid them in fulfilling their potential.  
• Inadequate education contributes to the cycle of poverty by making it more difficult for low-income children to lift themselves and future generations out of poverty.

Charities

UNICEF

UNICEF stands for United Nations Children’s Fund. UNICEF works in 190 countries for the survival, protection and development of every child, with a focus on the lives of children who are the most disadvantaged and excluded. 

What does UNICEF do? 

UNICEF strives to uphold children’s rights as outlined in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), and around the world this work takes shape in numerous ways:

They deliver long-term international development programs, and partner with local organisations who are doing the same

They respond to humanitarian emergencies, delivering both short- and long-term support and protection for children in crisis situations

They advocate for children by influencing policy and guiding decision makers in prioritising children’s best interests at all times

UNICEF strives to assist children who are impoverished by offering them necessities.

Please donate today at http://www.unicef.org.au/our-work/what-we-do  to help and support children in need.

World Vision

"World Vision is a worldwide community development organisation that provides short-term and long-term assistance to 100 million people worldwide (including 2.4 million children)."

World Vision has been working for six decades. They have an estimated 22,500 staff members working in 96 countries. World Vision has been working towards eliminating poverty and its causes. World Vision is committed to the poor and work with people of all cultures, faiths and genders to achieve transformation. They do this through relief and development, policy advocacy and change, collaboration, education about poverty, and emphasis on personal growth, social justice and spiritual values.

The action World Vision is committed to includes:

• Transformational development, which is the phrase they use to describe a holistic approach to improving the lives of the poor by recognising people's physical, social, spiritual, economic and political needs.
• emergency relief – following the International Code of Conduct for disaster relief organisations
• Promotion of justice – they advocate for victims of injustice and poverty
• Strategic initiatives - such as programs promoting community leadership
• Public awareness - getting the word out

Main concerns

• The needs of children 
• Affordable technology solutions 
• Long term visibility and sustainability
• Gender equality
• Education and skills training
• HIV and AIDS education and prevention

Bibliography

• http://www.apa.org/pi/families/poverty.aspx
• http://www.cpag.org.uk/content/impact-poverty
• http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2528796/
• http://www.unicef.org.au
• https://www.barnardos.org.uk/what_we_do/our_work/child_poverty/child_poverty_what_is_poverty/child_poverty_statistics_facts.htm
• http://www.globalissues.org/article/26/poverty-facts-and-stats
• http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/poverty
• http://www.worldvision.com.au/about-us
• https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Vision_International

[All last accessed on 7th November 2015]