Despite important strides in the fight against poverty in the last few decades, child poverty remains widespread and persistent, particularly in Africa.
Two-thirds of children in sub-Saharan Africa face all manners of hardship. These include poor living conditions, low educational outcomes, high levels of malnutrition and often high risks of exposure to different forms of violence. One in five children in sub-Saharan Africa are estimated to grow up in extreme “monetary” poverty, meaning they live in families without adequate incomes to make basic ends meet.
In this month’s episode of Between the Lines, IDS Researcher, Keetie Roelen and Yisak Tafere from the Policy Institute, Ethiopia, discuss their co-edited book “Putting Children First: New Frontiers in the Fight Against Child Poverty in Africa” – authored by over .
They outline some of the initiatives aiming to reduce child poverty and how they hope that this book will push the frontiers by challenging existing narratives, exploring alternative understandings of the complexities and dynamics underpinning child poverty and, crucially, examining policy options that work.
Interviewing Keetie and Yisak is IDS Research Associate, Sir Richard Jolly.
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