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UNICEF Greece report: 686,000 children at risk of poverty
In its latest report UNICEF states that one in three children in Greece was at risk of poverty or social expulsion. The total number may shock: 686,000 children or 35.4 percent of the children population in Greece. The causes? Rising unemployment and cuts in welfare benefits. 292,000 children live in households with no working adults and – of course – have no access to health care system.
“Conditions for children have deteriorated in Greece in recent years, as a result of a reduction in welfare benefits, rising parental unemployment, poverty and insufficient access to healthcare, according to UNICEF’s report “State of Children in Greece 2014 – The repercussions of the economic crisis on children,” released on Thursday.
More than a third of the child population, specifically 686,000 children or 35.4 pct of the total, were considered at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2012. The percentage had risen from 30.4 pct in 2011, with children of one-parent families (74.7 pct) and three-child-plus families (43.7 pct) the most at risk. Children living in households with no working adults rose to 292,000 or 13.2 pct of the total in 2012, having increased by 204,000 compared with 2008.
The report, compiled by UNICEF’s Greek Committee in collaboration with the University of Athens, was presented during a press conference on Thursday that also announced the annual UNICEF radiothon for children throughout the world, due to take place on April 10.
The report showed that the number of children in Greece was smaller than in 2001, with the underage population having shrunk 9 pct based on a 2011 census, at a faster rate than the overall population, which fell by 1.1 pct. Specifically, children under 18 accounted for 17.5 pct of the country’s permanent inhabitants (51.2 pct boys and 48.8 pct girls), though the number of children belonging to migrant or foreign families increased, rising 11.8 pct relative to 2001 and accounting for 9.6 pct of the underage population in Greece (from 7.8 pct in 2001).
Foreign nationals at risk of poverty in Greece came to 43.7 pct in 2012, while for children of foreign nationals this percentage was even higher at 53.1 pct, from 49.6 pct in 2011.
Living conditions for children deteriorated, with 74.1 pct of poor households with children and 29.5 pct of non-poor households with children saying they were unable to meet the cost of unplanned but also daily spending, including payment of bills, loans and the cost of a diet that included chicken, meat, fish or vegetables every second day. Roughly 86.5 pct of poor households with children said they did not have enough money to spend for a week’s holiday in 2012.
Welfare payments decreased by 4.9 pct in 2011 relative to 2009, while a significant number of children in Greece had no access to health care because their parents had lost their state social insurance coverage.
(full report via ANA-MPA)
PS Shocked? Wait for the data about children and families living without electricity…
Source: http://www.keeptalkinggreece.com/2014/04/04/unicef-greece-report-686000-children-at-risk-of-poverty/
