The fourth international conference held jointly by UNICEF and the New School University drew over 180 participants from 37 countries during April 21-23rd (www.equityforchildren.org) Following previous conferences on child poverty and social policy, the theme of rethinking poverty highlighted new methodologies, exploratory research, and policy options applied to child poverty issues. The conference highlighted creative and strategic approaches in the current development environment, including in situations of post-conflict or food insecurity, in the context of Islamic law, under economic and political transition, as well as in the context of western, industrialized countries.
Preliminary results from the UNICEF Global Study on Child Poverty animated discussions on how to analyze data for advocacy and how to command the attention of policymakers. Critical perspectives from academics and policy advocates provided an objective view of the analysis yet to be done, common mistakes to be avoided, and the promise held by the work done so far.
In moving from a review of current practice to possible solutions for the future, conference participants used their own work as a springboard for sharing experiences. The differences in the cultural and political context of their work resulted in three days of rich exchange and elaboration. Participants reported invigorating perspectives and an expanded network as two outcomes of the conference.
The first day’s panels focused on the multidimensional nature of poverty, its impact on children, and its measurement, and on the use of evidence to inform policy. The discussions on conceptual and methodological issues set the stage for the second and third day’s panels on country studies, multi-country projects, social service delivery initiatives, and policy and advocacy options. Following the exchange of country experiences, the last session drew reflections on collective and individual efforts in going forward.
The following is a summary of the keynote addresses and panel sessions, which are listed in the Conference Agenda. A concise review of the conference is provided by the Communication Initiative Network here:
Welcome and Opening Remarks
Ronald Kassimir, Associate Provost for Curriculum and Research, The New School - Download Video
Alberto Minujin, Conference Director, Graduate Program in International Affairs, The New School - Download Speech
Saad Houry, Deputy Executive Director, UNICEF
Keynote address: Deb Matthews
Deb Matthews, Minister of Children and Youth Services, Ontario, Canada, discussed how poverty reduction became a political priority in Ontario, and emphasized the need for rigorous data analysis and policy evaluation, including calculating the economic costs of ignoring children, and for “wraparound” supports that gave comprehensive benefits to families.
- Download Speech
Session 1: The impact of poverty on children
The first panel considered the impact of poverty on factors that have been typically associated with children’s wellbeing, such as under-five mortality rate, as well as factors that are typically not examined in this context, such as children’s self-esteem, aspirations, and other psychosocial abilities. The session also put on the table the effect of current political events, including the perceived rise in natural and man-made disasters and conflict around the world, and their implications for securing social development.
Chair: Gaspar Fajth, UNICEF Division of Policy and Planning. Commentator: Sheila B. Kamerman, Columbia University
Stefan Dercon, University of Oxford, Young Lives project, Poverty and the Psycho-social abilities of Children - download
Jane Kabubu- Mariara, University of Nairobi, Child Survival, Poverty and Policy Options from DHS Surveys in Kenya, download
Abdul Alim, UNICEF Turkmenistan, Insecurity as Poverty: Redefining the Poverty Debate for CIS, download
Session 2: The multidimensional nature of poverty and children
In illustrating the multidimensional aspects of poverty, the second panel discussed the macro- level context of Islamic law, the micro-level effects observed in intra-household resource allocation, and a conceptual model of child poverty that could bring together the macro, household, and child and family centered dimensions of poverty.
Chair: Jo Boyden, Director,Young Lives project, University of Oxford. Commentator: Asima Shirazi, University of Wollongong, United Arabic Emirates, download
Christian Salazar Volkmann, UNICEF Iran, Child Rights, Child Poverty and Islam: Key challenges for Poverty Reduction and Social Protection of Children in Iran, download
John Cockburn, Universite Laval, Quebec Canada, Children and the Intrahousehold Allocation of Poverty: Analysis of a Bangladeshi Household Survey with Individual Consumption Data, download
Gaspar Fajth, UNICEF Division of Policy and Planning, Poverty and Children: A Framework for Policy Coherence, download
Session 3: Measuring child poverty
The third panel presented ongoing initiatives in measuring child poverty, namely the European Union’s benchmarking of commonly agreed indicators to monitor child poverty and social exclusion and UNICEF’s Global Study on child poverty and disparity. Household surveys such as the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey and the Household Budget Survey in the CEE/CIS region were instrumental to the measurement efforts, and their use could be expanded to provide further information about child poverty.
Chair: Eva Jespersen, UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre. Commentator: Stefan Dercon, University of Oxford, Young Lives project
Attila Hancioglu UNICEF Division of Policy and Planning, MICS Experience: (i) Using MICS to measure Child Disparities
Edilberto Loaiza, UNICEF Division of Policy and Planning, Emerging issues
Isabelle Maquet-Engsted, Secretariat of the Indicator's Sub-Group of the Social Protection Committee,
International Benchmarks of child well-being/deprivations and EU processes to agree on indicators for member states' monitoring and experience sharing, download
Leonardo Menchini, UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre, The potential of household surveys for assessing child wellbeing in CEE/CIS'
David Gordon, Townsend Centre for International Poverty Research, University of Bristol; Shailen Nandy, Research Associate, University of Bristol, The Measurement of Child Poverty in UNICEF’s Global Study on Child Poverty & Disparities
Session 4: Using data and analysis to inform policy
Session 4 featured a discussion of efforts to compile and use data for advocacy and policy-making including: the National Statistical Coordination Board of the Philippines’ generation of poverty statistics on children using small-area estimation techniques with census data; UNICEF’s assessment of child well-being in the CEE/CIS region, conducted along multiple dimensions and based on the Convention on the Rights of the Child; the first American Human Development Report, which used U.S. census data at the Congressional District level to examine deprivation and other critical issues; and a proposed conceptual framework for an Egypt Child Rights Index.
Chair: Jackie Klopp, School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University. Commentator: Jan Vandemoortele, UNICEF Division of Policy and Planning
Jessamyn Encarncacion, National Statistical Coordination Board, Manila Philippines, Statistics on Children in Poverty: Towards Informed Decisions on Poverty Alleviation, download
Petra Hoelscher, UNICEF Regional Office for CEE/CIS,
A child well-being index for CEE/CIS. Monitoring child well-being in transition
Sarah Burd-Sharps, American Human Development Rrport,The Measure of America: The First American HDR 2008-2009
Dennis Arends, Monitoring and Evaluation, UNICEF Egypt, Foundations for an Egypt Child Rights Index, download
Keynote address: Ambassador Moushira Khattab
Ambassador Moushira Khattab, Secretary General of the National Council for Childhood and Motherhood, Egypt, highlighted the importance of defining child poverty independently from general poverty, and of recognizing children as distinct rights holders and active participants, not passive subjects. The relatively new construction of childhood in some cultures meant that global studies had to account for national variations in the discourse on childhood and citizenship. Ambassador Khattab described efforts in Egypt that dealt with the interrelated issues of child poverty, social justice, and human rights.
- Download Speech
Presentation: Multi-country initiatives on child poverty
Jo Boyden described the objectives and findings of the Young Lives project. Young Lives aims to provide qualitative and quantitative evidence to inform policy debates for children. It tracks changing outcomes and impact of poverty for children through childhood, into adulthood, and the next generation. It covers Ethiopia, India (Andhra Pradesh), Peru, and Vietnam in order to study childhood experience in different contexts. Gaspar Fajth discussed UNICEF’s Global Study on Child Poverty and Disparities, which is being carried out in 40 countries and seven regions in 2007-2008 using MICS, Demographic and Health Surveys, and other data. The Global Study studies gaps and opportunities in national poverty reduction strategies, focuses on the poverty and disadvantage faced by families with children, and examines how public policies could reduce child deprivation.
Chair: Elizabeth Gibbons, UNICEF Division of Policy and Planning
Jo Boyden, Director,Young Lives project, University of Oxford, Challenges and Limitations in Implementing Holistic Approach to the Study of Childhood Poverty; the case of Young Lives Project, download
Gaspar Fajth, UNICEF Division of Policy and Planning,
The Global Study on Child Poverty and Disparities, download
Session 5: Country experiences – analyzing child poverty
This session explored the initial results from the UNICEF Child Poverty study. Country studies from the Republic of Congo, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Cameroon, Tanzania, and Uzbekistan presented the analysis conducted so far. Results from the Congo showed how decomposing deprivation along its multiple dimensions could help identify priorities for policy interventions. Results from the DRC indicated that entrenched views about the prevalence of poverty make it difficult to institute policy reform and resource distribution. The attempt to relate income and non-income poverty in Cameroon framed questions about how the location of the household, ethnicity, and gender of the household head could impact child poverty.
In Tanzania, results showed large geographic disparities in mortality rates, malnutrition, HIV prevalence, and education, despite overall improvements in these indicators. The Uzbekistan study noted the novelty of the concept of child poverty and poor availability of data. Economic transition in Uzbekistan had affected access to social services and social protection; the study identified categories to analyze child poverty based on the country context.
First Part:
Chair: Elizabeth Gibbons, UNICEF Division of Policy and Planning.Commentators: Shailen Nandy, University of Bristol
Geranda Notten, Maasricht University/UNICEF Congo Brazzaville,The Multidimensional Poverty of Women and Children in the Republic of Congo
Mukole Kongolo, Human Sciences Research Council, Pretoria South Africa, Children and Poverty: The Perspective of Democratic Republic of Congo
Hamidou Poufon, UNICEF, Kingne, Ministère de l'Economie de la Planification et de l'Aménagement du Territoire, Global Study: Defining, Measuring and Assessing Child Poverty In Cameroon
Second Part:
Chair: Bernardo Kliksberg Regional Bureau for Latin American and the Caribbean, UNDP. Commentator: Sanjay Reddy, Columbia University
Masuma Mamdani, Research on Poverty Alleviation;
Francis Sichona, University of Dar es Salaam;
Aldegunda Komba - National Bureau of Statistics,
Global Study: Child Poverty and Disparities in Tanzania, download
Ulugbek Olimov and Azizkhon Khankhodjaev, Center for Economic Research, Uzbekista, Global Study: Conceptual Framework for Uzbekistan
Session 6: Getting services to work for children
This panel examined how social services could more effectively help to reduce child poverty. In Turkey, a survey of children and child rights practitioners showed that children were unaware of available social services and that practitioners were unaware of certain basic child rights principles. A study of Universal Primary Education (UPE) in Uganda showed that the education outcomes of disadvantaged children were still lagging behind ten years after the implementation of UPE. A proposed study on India aimed to highlight the gaps in services that may hinder achievement of the MDG targets relevant for child poverty.
Chair: Abdelmajid Tibouti, UNICEF Programme Division. Commentator: Tamo Chattopadhay, Columbia University
Tanzer Gezer, Association for Rehabilitation of Street Children, Istanbul, Granting Children's Right to Participate, download
Joseph Wassawa-Matovu, Lecturer, Economics and Management, Makerere University, Uganda, How can disadvantaged children be made to benefit from universal primary education? The Case of Uganda, download
R.S. Goyal, Indian Institute of Health Management Research, Poverty of Children in India: Can it meet the Millennium Development Goals? download
Presentation: Influencing policy for children’s rights - Communication, knowledge transfer and online networks
Participants discussed The Drum Beat, equityforchildren.org, and the Global Study blog as three web-based communication and networking strategies that could raise awareness on child poverty issues and foster exchange and transfer of knowledge. The Drum Beat is the e-magazine of the Communication Initiative Network, www.comminit.com, founded on the idea that communication and media are central to social and economic development. www.equityforchildren.org, created by the Graduate Program in International Affairs at The New School, is an online forum for learning, research, and communication on child poverty and disparities, children’s rights, and evaluation of development initiatives. The UNICEF Global Study blog, www.unicefglobalstudy.blogspot.com, brings together Study participants and other interested parties to share methods, findings, and experiences.
Chair: Patricia Moccia, UNICEF Division of Communication
Alberto Minujin, equityforchildren, download
Sharmila Kurukulasuriya, UNICEF Global Study on Child Poverty and Disparity, download
Session 7: Policies and choices: Impact on child poverty
The seventh panel analyzed the impact of economic policies on children. An analysis of trade in South Africa found that among other effects, trade liberalization increases intra-household inequality among girls and boys and increases inter-household inequality. A study of electricity privatization in Bosnia and Herzegovina found that a rise in electricity prices would negatively impact children’s health, increase child labor, reduce access to information, and increase girls’ and women’s workload. Trade liberalization in Peru was found to have uneven gains across the population, contrary to the government’s indication of positive long term effects for all.
Chair: Marta Mauras Perez, UNICEF Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean. Commentator: Enrique Delamonica, Graduate Program in International Affairs, The New School
Lulit Mitik, University of Nice-Sophia Antipolis, France, The Impact of Parents' Decision-making between Household Work and School, download
Yulia Privalova Krieger, UNICEF Bosnia and Herzegovina; Erna Ribar, UNICEF Bosnia and Herzegovina, Chile Rights Impact Assessment of Economic Policies: A Case Study from Bosnia and Herzegovina, download
Javier Escobal, Group for the Analysis of Poverty (GRADE, Peru), Young Lives project,Trade Liberalization and Child Welfare: Assessing the Impact of a Free Trade Agreement between Peru and the USA USA, download
Keynote address: Dr. Safwan Masri
Dr. Safwan Masri, Director, Columbia University Middle East Research Center, spoke about the potential for international education initiatives to foster research and facilitate exchange of knowledge in developing and middle-income countries. Dr. Masri described Columbia University’s plans to open global centers to extend its faculty research globally. For example, Columbia University’s Teachers’ College school of education would provide teacher training through a research and training center for the Middle East located in Amman, Jordan.
Safwan Masri, Director, Columbia University Middle East Research Centre, Globalizing Education: Impact on Sustainable Economic Development
Introduced by Marta Mauras Perez, UNICEF Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean
Session 8: Making policies that work for children
The final panel shifted the focus from policy analysis to advocacy. Given the lack of a single database which linked policies and outcomes for children, a compilation of sources of data on indicators, policies, and expenditures was reviewed as a useful start. In Brazil, UNICEF had based it’s Municipal Seal of Approval program on fostering community participation, collecting data on how well municipalities were meeting the basic needs of children, and using data as an advocacy tool to improve municipal performance. In Nepal, UNICEF had proposed a universal child grant as a short-term intervention with “peace dividends”, which could later be phased in as part of a longer term social protection program. A first-time study of child vulnerability in the Caribbean highlighted the risks posed by food insecurity and neglect of children in budgets and poverty reduction policies. The study led to national consultations and first steps towards policy reform.
Chair: Yoriko Yasukawa, UNICEF Division of Policy and Planning.Commentator: Rosalia Cortes, Latin America Faculty of Social Science (FLACSO)
Shirley Gatenio-Gabel, Columbia University, Reducing Child Poverty in Developing Countries, download
Marcio Carvalho, UNICEF Brazil, The UNICEF Municipal Seal of Approval in the Brazilian Semi-Arid Region as a tool to reduce poverty and inequality, download
Mariana Stirbu, UNICEF Regional Office fro South Asiaand Marta Cali, UNICEF Nepal, Introducing child-friendly social protection in a post-conflict environment: The case of Nepal, download
Tom Olsen, UNICEF Eastern Caribbean Office, Rethinking Child Poverty and Vulnerability: evidence-based social policy for children - lessons learned from the Eastern Caribbean region, download
Final session
In the closing discussion, held as an open debate, conference participants were asked to propose actions, both recommendations for organizations and personal commitments, which could move the policy agenda forward. Proposals included the following:
- Rather than advocating for specific policies, put together a compehensive “child poverty reduction strategy” which the government can commit to.
- Conduct cross-country comparisons within a meaningful universe/region, and foster discussion among policymakers from within a region.
- Involve policy makers into global discussions such as the present conference. Also invite people who may not agree with us.
- Make better connections between the field and academia. Cultivate new practitioners and scholars who will take on this issue, e.g. university students. Add teachings on child poverty to school curricula.
- Engage religious groups in policy discussions.
- Build capacity among professionals working on children’s rights.
- Empower women, which is essential for eradicating child poverty.
- Given the multidimensional nature of poverty, find an institutional anchor for interventions, potentially at the subnational level, to which we can map back or relate the whole set of policies. Monitor global goals at the subnational level.
- Derive and agree upon a common set of child poverty indicators; everyone is presently starting from scratch. Recently there has been an explosion of interest in childhood indicators: Take advantage of the platform this has created.
- Seek policy coherence: Filter all policies, including macroeconomic policies, through the lens of children.
- Evaluate the process of implementation; discuss what is feasible and workable.
Moderator: Ambassador Moushira Mahmoud Khattab, Secretary General of the National Council for Childhood and Motherhood
Sakiko Fukuda-Parr, Graduate Program in International Affairs, The New School
Yoriko Yasukawa, UNICEF Division of Policy and Planning
Dave Gordon, Townsend Centre for International Poverty Research, University of Bristol
For more information about the conference, please visit the UNICEF website |
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