Child Poverty and Disparities in Swaziland

1 signing by some 180 nations of a landmark declaration 'A World Fit for Children.' A World Fit for Children reaffirmed world leaders' obligations to promote and protect the rights of each child as stipulated in the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and laid out 10 principles and objectives for the next decade. One of the objectives included in the declaration was eradication of poverty among children within a single generation. However, in Swaziland, six years after the adoption of A World Fit for Children, little is known about the level and extent of child poverty and disparities that exist in the country. This information is critical in evaluating national progress towards attaining the goals of the A World Fit for Children declaration, as well as the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) for 2015. Swaziland's Household Income and Expenditure Survey 2 conducted in 2001 provides information on economic welfare, but it offers little information on other 3 dimensions of well-being that are relevant for children. A child poverty analysis will also provide vital information about the situation of children in a country being stricken by the most severe HIV and AIDS epidemic in the world. More than two decades into the epidemic, there is mounting evidence indicating dramatic deterioration of the situation for children in Swaziland. According to a preliminary report from the latest Swaziland Demographic and Health Survey (SDHS), the number of orphans – 4 children who have lost one or both parents – stands at 97,000 (23 percent of all children). There are also 130,000 children (31 percent of all children) who fit the definition of 'OVC' (orphans and vulnerable children), meaning that they have lost one or both parents, or have a very sick parent, or live in a household where an adult has been very sick or died in the past 12 months. It is projected that the number of OVC will increase dramatically to 200,000 in 2010 and to 250,000 in 2015. There are also signs that rising food insecurity may be adversely affecting the well-being of children in the country. According to the most recent vulnerability assessment the prevalence of stunting – a proxity for chronic malnutrition among children aged 6 to 59 months – increased in all 5 four regions from an average of 30 percent in Aril 2006 to 52 percent in June 2009. It is against this backdrop that …