The plight of children in the 21st century

Through-out the world hundreds of thousands of children and young people leave their homes for a number of reasons from ill health to abject poverty, or are simply abandoned by adults who are barely able to look after themselves let alone hungry children who may be too disadvantaged to help seek out an existence on the land.

African children are being left further and further behind and will make up more than half of the world’s poor by 2030, An estimated 87 million African children will be born into poverty each year in the 2020s,its also true that about 40% of Africans still live on less than $1.90 a day.

In a sad note,Africa could have one billion undernourished, malnourished and hungry children and young people by 2050 if current levels continue unabated. More than half of African countries are currently off course to meet targets required in the African regional nutrition strategy (2015-2025). Just nine countries will meet the target of reducing stunting by 40% by 2025.

A child dies every three seconds globally due to food deprivation – 10,000 children every day – but although figures show an improvement in child hunger at a global level, it is getting worse in some parts of  Africa, where the problem is largely a question of political will.

Child hunger is fundamentally a political problem; it is the offspring of the unholy alliance of political indifference, unaccountable governance, and economic mismanagement. Persistent and naked though the reality is, it remains a silent tragedy, one that remains largely unacknowledged and tolerated, perhaps because it is a poor man’s problem.

It is completely unacceptable that children are still going hungry in the 21st century. The statistics are truly alarming. Although the world now produces more food than ever, it hasn’t resulted in better diets.

On the other hand, on average, women are still having four to five children, and it’s the part of the world where poverty is coming down most slowly, partly because of slow growth but also because of very high levels of inequality, a child born into poverty faces greater risks of illiteracy; greater risks of mortality before the age of 5. They’re between two and three times more likely to die before their fifth birthday. They are far less likely to escape poverty themselves, which means that they will become the transmission mechanism for poverty to another generation.

Transferring more monetary resources to children who are living in poverty has to be part of the solution, but we also know that money is not enough. It’s critically important that these children get access to basic nutritional services, the basic health interventions, and the school systems that they need to escape poverty.

If poverty reduction targets are not met, the world will fall short on other sustainable development goals in education, health and gender equality. Children are our future but the future of this rising generation is in peril.

Together, the global community, NGOs and development partners can work to change this reality and create an everyday that brings stories of opportunity and hope. To achieve this, we need to build a community filled with care and love, education and healthcare, empowerment and sustainability.

Global leaders must #ALSO do everything in their power, not only to lift children out of poverty, but to protect, nurture and help them realise their full potential. The most successful anti-poverty movement will be the one that leaves no one behind by ending poverty in all its forms and dimensions, everywhere. #Hope4Children #ChildrenInNeed #HumanityandInclusion #HumanRights #SharedProsperity #Sustainability #ProperGovernance #FutureGenerations #SDG1 #SDGs