Poverty takes away the right to childhood
Children’s perceptions of poverty in four EU Member States
Eurochild published its first report on Child Poverty, which provides an overview of the situation on the ground in Bulgaria, Croatia, Estonia, and Malta bringing children’s voices into the conversation. The report is the final product of a series of consultations and surveys with children carried out by four National Eurochild Forums: the National Network for Children in Bulgaria, the Society ‘Our Children’ Opatija in Croatia, the Estonian Union for Child Welfare, and the Malta Foundation for the Wellbeing of Society.
According to the latest data from Eurostat for 2022, 24.7% of children in Europe are at risk of poverty and social exclusion, which could have a devastating impact on their lives. Eurochild is committed to working towards a society where children grow up happy, healthy, confident, and respected as individuals in their own right. Bringing children’s voices to such conversations is crucial to this objective.
‘The underrepresentation of children’s voices in decision-making is still pervasive, especially in discussions related to child poverty. With our report, we put children’s perspectives under the spotlight because no one understands the lived experiences of children better than children themselves.’ - H.E. Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca, Eurochild President.
For this report, children were consulted with a mixed-methods approach to adapt and respond to national and local circumstances. The consultation process and this report aimed to grasp how children understand the causes, manifestations, and effects of poverty on their peers, and to provide a space for children to voice their opinions, concerns, and finally, their ideas on what needs to change.
