One out of three babies worldwide are born into poverty, meaning they lack necessities as basic as nutrition or clean water. A third world problem? Think again! In the US 13% of all children grow up poor, in the Netherlands one in nine.
UNICEF states
In recent years, the world has made remarkable strides advancing development. Yet, some 736 million people still live in extreme poverty. Children are disproportionately affected. Despite comprising one third of the global population, they represent half of those struggling to survive on less than $1.90 a day.
Children who grow up impoverished often lack the food, sanitation, shelter, health care and education they need to survive and thrive. Across the world, about one in three children – roughly 663 million – live in households that are multidimensionally poor, meaning they lack necessities as basic as nutrition or clean water.
An estimated 385 million children live in extreme poverty.
The consequences are grave. Worldwide, the poorest children are twice as likely to die in childhood than their wealthier peers. For those growing up in humanitarian crises, the risks of deprivation and exclusion surge. Even in the world’s richest countries, one in seven children still live in poverty. Today, one in four children in the European Union are at risk of falling into poverty.
No matter where they are, children who grow up impoverished suffer from poor living standards, develop fewer skills for the workforce, and earn lower wages as adults.
Yet, only a limited number of Governments have set the elimination of child poverty as a national priority.
In 2017 a diverse group of organizations came together to form a Global Coalition to End Child Poverty to work collectively for change. Their guide to achieven the United Nations number one Sustainable Development Goal of ending child poverty can be found online:
https://www.unicef.org/reports/world-free-child-poverty
And what can you do?
Let’s mobilize as many people as possible to help newborns get a better start in life. Make donating baby clothes, toys and unused diapers a part of your everyday routine. Donate money to charitable organizations specializing in children’s needs, such as UNICEF or Stichting Babyspullen. And volunteer at these type of NGO’s, they need all the help they can get in for example collecting baby items for newborn starter boxes, education in household financing, and campaigning for affordable housing and minimum wages – of course it’s great if you want to donate for struggling families but the long term solutions to poverty must come from the governments.