Logo UNICEF Innocenti
Office of Research-Innocenti
menu icon

Resources and policies for children



To complement ongoing research on child poverty and analysis on the implementation of the CRC, and as contribution to UNICEF wide attention to ‘social protection’, the IRC research gives a particular attention to article 4 of the CRC on the allocation of resources to the maximum extent possible.
Article 4 calls for child centred macro-economic and social policies. It addresses the question of budgetary allocation for the realization of economic, social and cultural rights, including with a view to ensuring that each child has access to basic social services of quality to provide for the child’s adequate standard of living, development to the fullest potential, and protection from neglect, exploitation, abuse and discrimination.

The Committee on the Rights of the Child will host a day of discussion on 21 September 2007 on article 4, to which the Centre will contribute. One of the areas being considered concerns analysis of ODA to support the realizations of children’s rights.
In their implementation efforts and reporting to the Committee on the Rights of the Child States Parties are expected to address the role of international cooperation in promoting the realization of children’s rights. Donor countries are required to provide information on their aid in direct support of policies and programmes for children. From the Committee’s work, it is difficult to identify a systematic approach for monitoring donor country efforts in terms of estimated spending and shares in total ODA. For international comparison, transparency and accountability it may be desirable to have an internationally agreed approach to report on and assess such flows.

Within the context of the study on General Measures of Implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, IRC and the OECD are working on the development of a systematic approach to review ODA for children using the internationally comparable statistics of the OECD DAC Creditor Reporting System (CRS). The study will use as a basis for exploration systems developed by Sweden and Norway for tracking their aid in support of children, including an investigation into the channels of delivery and the importance of ‘new aid modalities’.

Further detailed analysis of how Sweden and Norway report on aid in support of the CRC priorities within the CRS system will be pursued following further discussion with the countries.
This research and working papers associated with the Innocenti Report Card 6 on child poverty in rich countries (2005) have contributed to UNICEF wide efforts to consider how to address needs of children within social protection mechanisms in countries at different levels of development. Potential area of research

As part of extending research into middle income countries and in support of the UNICEF Social Protection agenda, IRC is giving consideration to mapping systems of financial benefits to families with young children in a representative sample of middle and higher income countries to compare systems in terms of their ability to mitigate poverty among relevant households, as well as their cost effectiveness. It will consider the balancing of universal systems that target families with special needs (poverty, children with disabilities). Budgets and fiscal decentralization

Looking at a selected group of countries, e.g., 4-6, through case studies, the analysis would consider (i) what/whether minimum standards of (a given set of) services for children have been set, (ii) what guidance exists to cost the provision of these services to qualifying children at all localities within a country, and (iii) in turn budget for it, at the central and local levels. Special consideration will be given to how funds from Central government are allocated to local governments for these services, whether different revenue generation possibilities among sub-regions are considered, how such disadvantages are overcome (revenue equalization etc.), and what barriers exist for local level governments to access dedicated funds.

This research would draw on and could eventually contribute to WB supported Medium Term Expenditure Frameworks - and the budgeting and allocation of adequate resources for services for children within the context of PRSPs.

Publications

The Impact of the Indonesian Financial Crisis on Children: An analysis using the 100 villages data
Publication

The Impact of the Indonesian Financial Crisis on Children: An analysis using the 100 villages data

This paper examines the impact of the Asian crisis on children in Indonesia. School attendance dropped slightly after the onset of the crisis but has since rebounded to higher than pre-crisis levels. Fewer children are now working, although the older children who are working and are not attending school seem to be working longer hours.
Beyond Krismon: The social legacy of Indonesia's financial crisis
Publication

Beyond Krismon: The social legacy of Indonesia's financial crisis

Most of the countries caught up in the Asian financial crisis appear to have weathered the storm. But Indonesia's prospects are far more uncertain. The financial turbulence of the Krisis Moneter, or Krismon, set off a dramatic social and political chain reaction, with effects on children that could reverberate for years to come.
Implementing the Convention on the Rights of the Child: Resource mobilization in low-income countries
Publication

Implementing the Convention on the Rights of the Child: Resource mobilization in low-income countries

This title focuses on the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child as it relates to children's basic economic and social rights in developing countries in terms of the obligations placed by the Convention on both States and the international community.
Implementing the Convention on the Rights of the Child: Resource mobilization in low-income countries. Summary
Publication

Implementing the Convention on the Rights of the Child: Resource mobilization in low-income countries. Summary

This title focuses on the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child as it relates to children's basic economic and social rights in developing countries in terms of the obligations placed by the Convention on both States and the international community.
Macroeconomic Policy, Poverty Alleviation and Long-term Development: Latin America in the 1990s
Publication

Macroeconomic Policy, Poverty Alleviation and Long-term Development: Latin America in the 1990s

This Innocenti Occasional Paper examines the social and economic dynamics of poverty in Latin America from the late 1970s onward. The author’s analysis shows clearly the forces at work behind the observed changes in the nature and extent of poverty in the region.
Resources and Child Rights: An economic perspective
Publication

Resources and Child Rights: An economic perspective

This paper first examines the use of human, economic and organizational resources in producing social outputs, in terms of the two main forms that resources take: 'stocks' and 'flows'. Based on this framework, several key measures are identified for increasing the availability of resources for the implementation of child rights, including changes in technologies and processes, and the expanded use of 'non-traditional' resources for children.
Tax Reforms and Equity in Asia: The experience of the 1980's
Publication

Tax Reforms and Equity in Asia: The experience of the 1980's

The 1980s witnessed a number of important shifts in fiscal policy in both the developed and the developing world. This paper examines the Asian experience of this process of change - identifying key reforms and assessing their effectiveness. Particular emphasis is placed throughout upon the equity implications of the various tax systems.
Tax Reforms and Equity in Latin America: A review of the 1980s and proposals for the 1990s
Publication

Tax Reforms and Equity in Latin America: A review of the 1980s and proposals for the 1990s

This paper focuses on the equity aspects of tax systems in Latin America. Aftrer reviewing quantative characteristics regarding the level and composition of tax structures, the paper analyses recent country experiences of tax reforms and attempts to show how the design of instruments has coped with distributional issues in taxation.