Four out of every five children in Malta who are of sub-Saharan African origin are at risk of poverty, according to a report by the EU’s human rights agency.

The publication, issued on Wednesday to mark International Day for the Eradication of Poverty shows that 79 per cent of sub-Saharan children, or descendants of sub-Saharan migrants are at risk of poverty, compared to the European average of 70 per cent.

Among the member states included in this comparison, Austria has the highest rate of sub-Saharan migrant children at risk - 86 per cent – while the lowest (61 per cent) was recorded in Germany and Finland.

Almost 25 million children under 18 live in European households with low incomes, low employment rates or with material deprivation. The at-risk-of-poverty rate for children of migrants, or descendants of migrants, is higher than that of children among the general population, according to the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights.

READ: Quarter of local children remain at risk of poverty

In its report Combating child poverty: an issue of fundamental rights, FRA states that one in four children are at risk of poverty or social exclusion across the EU, with inadequate education and healthcare threatening their fundamental rights and depriving them of opportunities to escape the poverty cycle. 

It urges policymakers to tighten existing EU and domestic laws and policies to meet legal standards under the UN’s Convention on the Rights of the Child and the European Social Charter.

It also called for the setting up of a European child guarantee scheme, as proposed by the European Parliament, to ensure every child has a decent home, diet, healthcare and education.

FRA director Michael O’Flaherty questioned how we could truly speak of a ‘social Europe’ when, across the EU we were “leaving children behind in unacceptable numbers”.

Child poverty can have devastating effects that last long into adulthood, depriving children of educational opportunities, childcare, access to healthcare, adequate food and housing, family support and even protection from violence. Play, sports, recreational activities and cultural events are in short supply, too.

“These realities can undermine children’s physical, intellectual and social development, setting them on a trajectory of low educational attainment and reduced participation in economic and social life.

“Plainly put: children living in poverty are more likely to become impoverished adults whose own children will live in poverty. The implications extend far beyond the individuals directly affected.”

According to Mr O’Flaherty, breaking this cycle of disadvantage presented a “serious challenge”, as the European Commission already underscored in its 2013 Recommendation on investing in children.

 

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