Half of Moldova’s child population lives in income poverty

Moldova, has more than 50% of its child population living in income poverty, the report of UNICEF’s Innocenti Research Center “Social Monitor 2006: Understanding child poverty in South-Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States”, launched on Thursday, October 18 informs. This study examines child poverty in the 20 countries of the South-Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States (SEE/CIS) region, concerning primarily with the post 1998 period. According to the report, poverty levels are highest among both adults and children in the countries with the lowest national per capita income, and for the most part, with the highest child shares in their total populations: Moldova, the Caucasus, and most of the countries of Central Asia. In all of these countries, child poverty rates exceed 50 per cent, a level which is considerably higher than the next worse performing country, Albania, and up to 10 times the rate calculated for some Balkan countries. The document ascertains that in Moldova the proportion of children living in income poverty did indeed decline from 74 per cent to 53 per cent between 1998 and 2003. In some countries declines in child income poverty were very small, as for example in Kyrgyzstan (80% of children living in poverty), one of the poorest countries in the region, and in Romania (21%). The report also shows the fact that in some of the poorer countries, such as Moldova and Tajikistan, recent growth in GDP and household incomes has been helped by remittances from migrant workers. In the short term this type of growth may contribute to a reduction in income poverty; it may however have negative indirect socio-economic impacts. In the case of children left behind by migrant parents, the cost may be increases in other types of child deprivation, and it is not clear how long such growth can be sustained, the report presents. According to the same source, in Russia and Moldova, 25–30 % of all children live in incomplete families. In Russia, this is due largely to the high rates of divorce and separation, and also widowhood, as a result of the high rates of male adult mortality; while in Moldova it appears to be more related to divorce and separation in urban areas and to labour migration in rural areas. Moldova, despite its low level of GDP per capita and high levels of child poverty, performs quite well in terms of preschool participation, and has witnessed an impressive growth in enrolments during the phase of economic recovery. In Moldova, 8 % of children aged 15–17 in urban areas do not go to school, compared to 26 % in rural areas. The lower attendance figures in rural areas may partly reflect lower expectations as to the benefits of education in terms of future career options, as well as pressures on children to help with agricultural production. But another factor is the physical conditions in the schools themselves. Repair and maintenance have often been neglected due to lack of budget funds, and the breakdown in central heating supply in some countries means that schools may not be heated in winter. Low salaries also mean that it is difficult to attract teachers to rural or remote areas. As regards living standards, the report shows the fact that in Moldova and Tajikistan about 20 % of urban children live in housing without a water connection. The study also mentions almost all children in the rural areas of Armenia, Bulgaria, Moldova, Romania and Tajikistan live in households using ‘dirty’ fuels as the main source of heating (such as firewood, charcoal, crop waste, coal) as opposed to ‘clean’ fuels (such as liquefied petroleum gas, natural gas or electricity). The use of ‘dirty’ fuels is one of the main sources of indoor air pollution and is associated with respiratory diseases among infants and children in these countries. The UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre in Florence, Italy, was established in 1988 to strengthen the research capability of the United Nations Children’s Fund and to support its advocacy for children worldwide. The Centre (formally known as the International Child Development Centre) generates knowledge and analysis to support policy formulation and advocacy in favour of children