As many as 180 million children in 37 countries of the world face a prospect worse than their parents. This analysis made by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) reveals two gross anomalies of the development pursued under the capitalist system. First, poor countries are getting more cornered and discriminated against because of the monopolistic economic strategy followed by multinational companies worldwide and second, the poorest within societies of the poor nations are facing further marginalisation. The UNICEF claims that one in 12 children live in countries where the lives of their parents were secure more than theirs 20 years ago. This means today's children face greater insecurity and uncertainty than before.
The celebration of the World Children's Day on November 20 each year thus gets dented to a large extent. Since the day marks the anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), the aim was to guarantee inclusive rights for children all over the world irrespective of the countries they live in. No doubt, in many countries children are better off than their earlier generations were but contrary to this positive outcome, hundreds of thousands of their peers in as many as 37 countries are threatened with a bleaker prospect of living in extreme poverty, getting out of school and even meeting a violent end to their lives.
Children are by no means to blame, nor are their parents. Global powers with ulterior motive play a dicey game in order to stoke and linger armed conflicts in many places of Africa and the Middle East. Countries in those regions are evidently worse off. Apart from direct human casualty, what tells more on the lives of children is economic casualty. Such conflicts together with poor governance has led to an increased proportion, the UNICEF finds, of people living on less than 1.90 a day in 14 countries in Benin, Cameron, Madagascar, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Primary school enrolment has declined in 21 countries including Tanzania -a country that otherwise made remarkable gains for its children in recent times. Now socio-economic disparities have started eroding its gains. How major conflicts directly contribute to violent deaths of children below 19 years of age is rudely exposed by a sudden rise in such deaths in countries like Central African Republic, Iraq, Libya, Syria, South Sudan and Yemen. A prolonged Arab boycott of Qatar may lead to spreading the conflagration further and as a consequence children in the region may have to pay the highest price.
Authoritarian and puppet governments are not even aware of the fact they are being used as pawns on the political chessboard by major players. Regions with elected governments considered strategically important feel enormous pressure to fall under the geo-political sway of such powers. Pursuance of independent trade and economic policies proves at times very difficult. Multilateral financiers such as the World Bank try to dictate terms in favour of major powers. How crude and nasty such manoeuvring and ploys can be is best illustrated by the financing of the Padma Bridge which ultimately fell through.
So, there is nothing to be surprised by the widening of disparities within societies, particularly in the poorer parts of the world. True, in affluent societies too the less privileged are increasingly finding themselves more at the receiving end. But at their level of socio-economic development and technological progress, even the trickle-down benefits prove enough for the majority of the poor to lead a near modest life. In poorer societies the living standard is still low and the poor have to make do with the minimum which is equivalent to a subhuman living condition.
In conditions like this, children fall several steps behind in one generation because of their inability to make use of the advanced technological gadgets. Families that have to live on less than $1.90 a day cannot afford even a cell phone. Lacking in education, members of such families cannot help their children to get admitted to any standard school. Even in Bangladesh where primary education is free, the marginalised stand hardly a chance of getting their children educated. Although in terms of immunisation and maternity service the country has achieved remarkable progress, it has failed to create equal opportunity for all children to receive education. Poverty does not allow children from poor families to continue education and the extra care outside class so essential for achieving high score in primary school final public examination is beyond their means.
Clearly social discrimination is further widening here as in other parts of the planet. At a time when a privileged segment is focused on getting the best of higher education abroad for their children, the lowest rung cannot even think of completing the free primary course at home. Its adverse impacts are many and prove pernicious to the overall progress of a nation. Inclusive development paradigm thus proves hollow within society and by extension among nations at various stages of their development.
In a situation like this, the severest blow is dealt to the hopes and aspirations of the children left excluded from mainstream society. It is tragic that not many people bother about the clear violation of children's rights in society. Everyone, no matter his or her size of material possession, is after enhancing wealth by means foul or fair. The down-trodden are damned forever, for they have none to count on -not even the UNICEF!
