The World Health Organization (WHO), UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and The Lancet medical journal recently unveiled a report titled “A Future for the World’s Children”. The report offers a deep analysis of 180 countries through two distinctive indices, namely the Flourishing Index and the Sustainability Index. India is positioned at 131st place on the Flourishing Index and 77th on the Sustainability Index.
Understanding the Flourishing Index
This index measures the best chance of survival and well-being for children. Here, the term flourishing is defined as the geometric mean of Surviving and Thriving. Numerous parameters are considered under both Surviving and Thriving components.
For the Surviving component, metrics such as maternal survival, survival in children younger than five years old, suicide rates, access to maternal and child health services, basic hygiene, sanitation, and absence of extreme poverty are taken into account.
On the other hand, Thriving includes parameters like educational achievement, growth and nutrition, reproductive freedom, and protection from violence.
The Global Outlook on the Flourishing Index
According to the report, Norway leads the world in survival, health, education, and nutrition rates. The Republic of Korea and the Netherlands follow in close succession. However, the Central African Republic, Chad, and Somalia are at the bottom of the rankings.
The report emphasizes that the ability of children to flourish is pivotal to the world’s survival. Yet, it states that no country is doing sufficient work to ensure a sustainable future for children.
Role of Junk Food Marketing
The report also reveals a significant connection between the harmful marketing of junk food, sugary beverages, and the alarming rise in childhood obesity rates. As a solution, it advocates for a global movement driven by and for children to safeguard their health.
Insights Into the Sustainability Index
The Sustainability Index ranks countries based on their surplus carbon emissions relative to the 2030 target. This index also recognizes that current national conditions for children to survive and thrive must not jeopardize future global conditions for children’s potential to flourish.
Global Scenario of the Sustainability Index
Interestingly, countries that lead in the Flourishing Index, like Norway (156th), the Republic of Korea (166th), and the Netherlands (160th) lag behind in the Sustainability Index. These countries emit 210% more CO2 per capita than their 2030 target. The only countries on track both in terms of Flourishing and Sustainability Indices are Albania, Armenia, Grenada, Jordan, Moldova, Sri Lanka, Tunisia, Uruguay, and Vietnam.
In terms of low carbon emissions, Burundi, Chad, and Somalia rank the best, while the U.S, Australia, and Saudi Arabia are among the ten worst emitters.
Key Recommendations
The report strongly recommends the elimination of CO2 emissions urgently and pushes for making children and adolescents the center of global efforts aimed at achieving sustainable development. It further emphasizes that new policies and investment across all sectors should work towards enhancing child health and rights. Moreover, it stresses the importance of incorporating children’s voices into policy decisions.
