International Children Foundation 2005 "Childhood Under Threat"

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(Free-Press-Release.com) August 20, 2005 -- Deprivations of poverty
ICF concludes that more than half the children in the developing world are severely deprived of one or more of the necessities essential to childhood:

640 million children do not have adequate shelter
500 million children have no access to sanitation
400 million children do not have access to safe water
300 million children lack access to information
270 million children have no access to health care services
140 million children have never been to school

90 million children are severely food-deprived ICF also makes clear that poverty is not exclusive to developing countries. In 11 of 15 industrialized nations, the proportion of children living in low-income households during the last decade has risen.
A growing war on childhood
Extreme poverty is one of the most devastating effects of armed conflict within countries, especially for children, as factions vie for ill-managed national resources. The report notes that 55 of 59 armed conflicts taking place between 1990 and 2003 involved war within, rather than between, countries.

The impact on children has been high: Nearly half of the 3.6 million people killed in war since 1990 have been children. And children are certainly not immune from being singled out as targets, as underscored by the September 2004 attack on schoolchildren in Beslan, Russian Federation.

Hundreds of thousands of children in conflict situations around the world are still:

recruited or abducted as soldiers
victims of landmines
forced to witness violence and killing
orphaned by violence
targets of sexual violence
Conflict has a catastrophic impact on overall health conditions as well. In a typical five-year war, the mortality rate of children under five increases by 13 percent.


When adults keep dying

The impact of HIV/AIDS on children is seen most dramatically in the wave of AIDS orphans that has now grown to 15 million worldwide. The death of a parent pervades every aspect of a child's life � from emotional well-being to physical security, mental development and overall health.

HIV/AIDS is not only killing parents but is destroying the protective network of adults in children's lives. Many teachers, health workers and other adults on whom children rely are also dying. And because of the time lag between HIV infection and death from AIDS, the crisis will worsen for at least the next decade. The report details the measures that nations must employ to prevent the spread of AIDS, keep adults with HIV alive and provide care for children already orphaned.Putting children first

International Children Foundation argues that bridging the gap between the ideal childhood and the reality experienced by half the world's children is a matter of choice.
According to James, "The quality of a child's life depends on decisions made every day in households, communities and in the halls of government. We must make those choices wisely, and with children's best interests in mind. If we fail to secure childhood, we will fail to reach our larger, global goals for human rights and economic development. As children go, so go nations. It's that simple."