GLOBAL: UNICEF: Poverty, War, HIV Hurting Children

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2004. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

GLOBAL: UNICEF: Poverty, War, HIV Hurting Children

Associated Press (12.09.04) - Thursday, December 09, 2004
Catherine McAloon

UNICEF's report "The State of the World's Children 2005; Childhood Under Threat," released today, said more than half the world's children are suffering the effects of poverty, war and HIV/AIDS, denying them a safe and healthy childhood. The report noted that more than 1 billion children are growing up hungry and unhealthy, schools have become targets for warring parties, and whole villages are being killed by AIDS.

The report said the failure of world governments to live up to standards outlined in 1989's Convention on the Rights of the Child caused children permanent damage and blocked progress toward human rights and advancement. In a foreword to the report, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said poverty denies children dignity and endangers their lives, conflict robs them of a secure family life, and HIV/AIDS kills parents, teachers, doctors and children.

UNICEF reported almost half a million children under age 15 died of AIDS in 2003, and another 630,000 were infected with HIV. By 2003, some 2.1 million children under 15 were living with HIV/AIDS, most of whom were infected during pregnancy, birth or breast-feeding. From 2001 to 2003, the number of children who had lost one or both parents to AIDS rose from 11.5 million to 15 million; around 80 percent of those lived in sub-Saharan Africa.

The report found that 640 million children did not have adequate shelter; 300 million had no access to information such as TV, radio or newspapers and 140 million children had never been to school.

UNICEF said Millennium Development Goals, which aim to improve the world through human development by 2015 and which the UN's 191 member states agreed to in 2000, could be achieved at an annual cost of $40 billion-$70 billion. World military spending in 2003 was $956 billion, the report said.
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