BLOG

What does the current global financial crisis mean to a child? (2009-07-08 00:00:00)

By CLH

What does the current global financial crisis mean to a child?
Here in Britain and across many other countries that have enjoyed economic growth and prosperity over recent years, it undoubtedly heralds a new era of uncertainty and upheaval.
But the story that millions of other children will tell is one of even greater, almost unimaginable, hardship.
Of mothers lost to disease and lack of basic healthcare - already more than half a million women die from preventable complications in pregnancy and childbirth each year.
Of brothers and sisters perishing in infancy as unfathomable financial events far away unfold with devastating consequences.
Already 10 million under fives die from preventable illnesses - with the World Bank predicting infant mortality rising by up to 400,000 annually as the worldwide financial crisis deepens.
And should it persist other chilling figures emerge: between 1.4 million and 2.8 million children will die before 2015 while a mother dies in pregnancy or childbirth every minute.
While for many of us in Western countries understandably worry about the effects of the worldwide financial crisis we cannot afford to turn away from the plight of voiceless millions of people in low income countries.
There have been significant gains but by the end of this year more than 50 million people will be living in poverty.

The Taskforce on Innovative Financing for Health Systems has published its report and recommends a series of technical instruments to help raise additional resources for health. The G8 countries must take these seriously as a means to preventing the financial crisis from becoming a human crisis.

Funding for women and children’s' healthcare in the world's poorest countries is not just an investment in human capital. Underfunding health inevitably undermines the economic wellbeing of a nation state and its neighbours with the resulting instability having widespread, sometimes worldwide consequences for us all.
For the maternal health of millions of women and babies against the backdrop of the economic crisis means our response is crucial. Meeting the MDGs seem more distant than ever as the current financial crisis forces an estimated 100 million of the worlds' poorest back into poverty.

It would be to our credit if our children, when they list the hardships of 2009, could boast that their parents did not turn their backs on those who needed our help