Unfortunately, I have not heard back from any contacts I tried to reach.
I found a report from the Childhood Poverty Research and Policy Centre on
Childhood Poverty in Kyrgyzstan (http://r4d.dfid.gov.uk/pdf/outputs/childhoodpoverty/chip_report_1_(english).pdf). The
report was very interesting and really emphasized the issues of poverty in the
country. I found the number of children living in poverty astounding. According
to the report, 60% of rural children and 54% of urban children under 10 live in
poverty. In addition, children under 1 have higher poverty numbers, 65% in
rural areas and 57% in urban areas. As a result of the staggering amount of
children in poverty, children are used as child labor and approximately 50% of
the children do not attend school. The children living in poverty are often
malnourished. According to the report children in poverty have different level
of malnutrition,
-
4% of urban children and 3% of rural children were
classified as wasted
-
7% of urban children and 13% of rural children were
classified as underweight
-
16% of urban children and 29% of rural children
were classified as stunted
-
19% of urban children and 28% of rural children had
severe or moderate anemia
I was surprised to see the statistics because we rarely hear about
poverty in different countries. It is sad to see large numbers or children
affected by the country’s struggling economy and high unemployment rate. The
government has taken steps to combat poverty by passing initiatives to improve
economic growth and improving social protections for the poor. One initiative
was called the Unified Monthly Benefit. This initiative is a single lump sum
benefit in cash instead of goods such oil and flour. Another program is the
social passport program. This program helps the government identify individuals
in need of social assistance. When the report was released the program, the
social passport system identified 200,000 families with an average per capita
income of less than 140 soms per month and 90,000 families with a average per
capita income of less than 200 soms per month. The country has addressed
measures to combat childhood poverty too. The measures include:
-
Ensuring families’ self-support and providing
targeted support to families unable to support themselves
-
Provisions of accessible (including free) education
and health services
The measures introduced by the government will need time to see if they
will provide positive outcomes for the children in Kyrgyzstan.
Tanya, you are not alone with obtaining contact from any of the international contacts. i have had no luck, as well. I looked up the childhood poverty page and viewed the area of Kyrgyzstan, too. It provided a lot of information about the different categories of children, from street children to disabled children. I enjoyed reading the article. All we can do is keep trying to contact someone. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteHi Tanya, sorry to hear that you could not connect with the contacts you were trying to make. I made connections, but I did not hear back this week. I guess it depends on how busy everyone is! I think that is great that you went ahead to gain some information on this issue on your own. I couldn't believe the high numbers of children and families living in poverty as well as the high percentage of child labor. I am continuously saddened by the high numbers of poverty and the affects it has on children. I am glad to see that they have initiatives put into place to help with this issue.
ReplyDeleteI look forward to learning more!
Thank you for sharing.
Take care,
Stephanie