The Big Picture

Children are often the first victims of war, disease and disaster. Children, who need the most protection in society, end up with the least. Poverty is unkind and brutal, particularly when it affects children, and it manifests in physical, emotional and social ways.

Poverty is: a child unable to pay the fees to attend school; an orphaned child whose parents have died of AIDS; a child sold into slavery; a child whose bones weaken from malnutrition; a child who must live in unsafe and unhealthy surroundings; a child who does not receive nurture, love and support.

Not only do children living in poverty struggle for basic survival, they are also deprived of a childhood, of intellectual stimulation and the opportunity to realize their personal aspirations. According to a study commissioned by UNICEF, which cited seven forms of childhood deprivation, one billion children in developing countries suffer from at least one form of severe deprivation. The seven forms of deprivation are lack of adequate food, safe drinking water, sanitation, health, shelter, education and access to information.

The World Takes Action

World leaders have been aware of the plight of children, but they have never taken drastic action to change or reverse the situation-until now. In 2000, leaders pledged their support to reduce extreme poverty during the United Nations Millennium Summit.

The resulting UN Millennium Development Goals established a timeline for the world to work to reduce extreme poverty by 2015.

Six of the eight Millennium Goals explicitly target children. The Millennium Development Goals are:

1. Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
2. Achieve universal primary education
3. Promote gender equality and empower women
4. Reduce child mortality
5. Improve maternal health
6. Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases
7. Ensure environmental sustainability
8. Develop a global partnership for development

Each country present at the summit agreed to do their share by increasing the amount of aid given to developing countries to 0.7 percent of their national income to help reach these goals.

The UN Millennium Summit's enthusiasm and confidence that these goals can be achieved has inspired many in the cause to fight poverty. In fact, some economists, thinkers, policy makers and activists believe that not only is reducing poverty by 2015 entirely possible, actually ending extreme poverty is within our reach and can be achieved by 2025.

The solution lies in countries complying with their promise to give 0.7 percent of their national income through 2015. It's not only about how much aid is given, but how it is used. Poverty can only be eradicated when local communities are involved in the development process.

Ending Extreme Poverty

Although the world was off to a good start in 2000, reaching the Millennium Goals and beyond has lost some momentum. With less than a decade to go, many countries are not following through with their pledges, and more still have not even announced a timeline for how they will achieve their stated goals. In 2003, only $69 billion of aid was given - $130 billion short of the goal.

While world leaders are slow to act on their promises, the developing world is waiting, watching and dying in the process. It has become obvious that many governments may not comply with their obligations.

Therefore, the solution to ending extreme poverty also lies with you. Concerned citizens are needed to join forces to encourage governments to follow-through on their promises, as well as to make the issue of ending child poverty more visible and accessible.

Our Goal

Working at the grassroots level, the goal of the Stop Child Poverty campaign is to create a community of world citizens who are actively engaged in urging governments to comply with the Millennium Goals. Raising global awareness about the plight of impoverished children, and urging concerned individuals to become directly involved through volunteerism and support of local projects, can accomplish this goal.

The Stop Child Poverty campaign's Big Push works to directly appeal to governments to meet their obligations to children. By joining the Stop Child Poverty campaign, you will receive regular Big Push updates and actions you can take on both a local and national level to push your government toward ending poverty.