Innocenti Publications Prospects for Children in the Polycrisis: A 2023 Global Outlook AUTHOR(S) UNICEF Innocenti – Global Office of Research and Foresight Published: 2023 Innocenti Publications This report outlines the polycrisis in which the world finds itself — multiple, simultaneous shocks with strong interdependencies, intensified in an ever-more integrated world — along with eight trends that will shape child rights and well-being in the coming year. The trends explored are: The pandemic's harms will continue to be counted - but reforms of health architecture and medical breakthroughs offer hope for children.Efforts to tame inflation will have unintended negative effects on child poverty and well-being - requiring policy measures that protect investments for vulnerable families and children.Multiple factors will contribute to continued food and nutrition insecurity - with increasing calls for greater climate adaptation and food systems reform to prevent food poverty in children.The worsening energy crisis may cause immediate harm to children - but the focus on energy sustainability provides hope for a greener future.Unmet needs and underinvestment in children warrant reforms of financial flows to developing countries - while renewed attention on climate finance and debt relief holds promise.Threats to democratic rights such as freedom of expression are expected to continue - but social movements, including those led by young people and women, are likely to push back.Increasing factionalism will put further stress on multilateralism - but efforts to address children's and young people's concerns may offer opportunities to find common ground.The internet will continue to fragment and become less global, resulting in further disparities for children - prompting a greater push for openness, fairness and inclusion. + - Cite this publication | Tags: child poverty, child well-being, climate change, COVID-19, democracy, education, energy policies, financial policy, financial systems, food crisis, gender equality, health, internet, nutrition, pandemic, social change × COPY BIBLIOGRAPHIC CITATION UNICEF Innocenti – Global Office of Research and Foresight 2023 Prospects for Children in the Polycrisis: A 2023 Global Outlook.
Innocenti Research Report Economic Crisis and Child Well-being in the West and Central Africa Region AUTHOR(S) Kaku Attah Damoah; Frank Otchere; Dominic Richardson Published: 2021 Innocenti Research Report The COVID-19 pandemic that swept over the world from early 2020 has triggered both health and economic shocks of unprecedented proportions in recent memory. Some estimates suggest that the consequences of these shocks will likely erase most of the progress made in global development over the past two decades. Many countries now risk falling further behind the attainment of national and international development goals, including the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Children are particularly vulnerable to the effects of these shocks due to their persistent higher levels of vulnerability, and the reality that school closures and other COVID-19 containment measures can be more damaging to children. This report examines the effect of previous economic crises on children’s well-being in UNICEF’s West and Central Africa Region (WCAR) and makes projections regarding the potential impacts of COVID-19-induced economic crises on priority indicators for the region. + - Cite this publication | No. of pages: 56 | Tags: austerity policy, child well-being, COVID-19, ecology, economic crisis, financial systems, health care, policy and planning, social protection × COPY BIBLIOGRAPHIC CITATION Kaku Attah Damoah; Frank Otchere; Dominic Richardson 2021 Economic Crisis and Child Well-being in the West and Central Africa Region. , pp. 56.
Innocenti Research Report Supporting Families and Children Beyond COVID-19: Social protection in high-income countries AUTHOR(S) Dominic Richardson; Alessandro Carraro; Victor Cebotari; Anna Gromada Published: 2020 Innocenti Research Report COVID-19 constitutes the greatest crisis that high-income countries have seen in many generations. While many high-income countries experienced the global financial crisis of 2007–2008, or have had national recessions, the COVID-19 pandemic is much more than that. COVID-19 is a social and economic crisis, sparked by a protracted health crisis.High-income countries have very limited experience of dealing with health crises, having their health and human services stretched beyond capacity, restricting the travel of their populations or having to close workplaces and schools – let alone experience of all of these things combined. These unique conditions create new and serious challenges for the economies and societies of all high-income countries. As these challenges evolve, children – as dependants – are among those at greatest risk of seeing their living standards fall and their personal well-being decline.This new UNICEF Innocenti report explores how the social and economic impact of the pandemic is likely to affect children; the initial government responses to the crisis; and how future public policies could be optimized to better support children. + - Cite this publication | No. of pages: 132 | Thematic area: Social protection | Tags: austerity policy, child well-being, COVID-19, ecology, economic crisis, financial systems, health care, high-income countries, policy and planning, social protection × COPY BIBLIOGRAPHIC CITATION Dominic Richardson; Alessandro Carraro; Victor Cebotari; Anna Gromada 2020 Supporting Families and Children Beyond COVID-19: Social protection in high-income countries. , pp. 132.
Innocenti Working Papers Is it possible to adjust ‘with a human face’? Differences in fiscal consolidation strategies between Hungary and Iceland AUTHOR(S) Bruno Martorano Published: 2014 Innocenti Working Papers Before the recent economic crisis, Hungary and Iceland were considered to be two excellent models of development. Hungary and Iceland were among the countries affected earliest and most by the recent macroeconomic shock, suffering a similar drop in GDP.While the Hungarian government implemented a flat tax reform in order to stimulate economic activity, the Icelandic government replaced its flat tax system with a progressive one increasing the participation of high income groups in the adjustment process. The aim of this paper is to compare the opposite adjustment paths followed by Hungary and Iceland on selected outcomes. + - Cite this publication | No. of pages: 22 | Thematic area: Child Poverty, Social Policies | Tags: crisis, financial analysis, financial systems, inequality, tax reforms, tax revenues × COPY BIBLIOGRAPHIC CITATION Bruno Martorano 2014 Is it possible to adjust ‘with a human face’? Differences in fiscal consolidation strategies between Hungary and Iceland. , pp. 22.