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Child poverty at a time of crisis

04 Jun 2012
29 May 2012
RC10 - boy - hands in pockets
A first-ever analysis of new figures from the European Union's Statistics on Income and Living Conditions household surveys reveals the extent of child poverty and child deprivation in the world's advanced economies. Some 13 million children in the EU, plus Norway and Iceland, are found to be "deprived", lacking basic items necessary for their development.
Meanwhile, 30 million children live in relative poverty in 35 countries with developed economies.

Report Card 10 looks at child poverty and child deprivation across the industrialized world, comparing and ranking countries' performance. This international comparison shows that child poverty in these countries is not inevitable, but policy susceptible - and that some countries are doing much better than others at protecting their most vulnerable children.

"Failure to protect children from today's economic crisis is one of the most costly mistakes a society can make," says Gordon Alexander, Director of UNICEF's Office of Research.

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