By Leonard Masauli

Lilongwe, May 15 (Mana): Latest Report on Child Multidimensional Poverty, compiled by United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), National Statistical Office (NSO) and    National Planning Commission (NPC) has revealed that that 70 percent of children in the country face various forms of poverty.

The Report was presented at Bingu International Convention Centre (BICC) in Lilongwe on Wednesday during a presentation of the Report on Child Multidimensional Poverty in the country.

The Report has highlighted that children in the country are deprived of good sanitation, housing, education, nutrition, health, and protection, all of which threaten their chances of becoming productive citizens in the future.

Commissioner of Statistics, Shelton Kanyanda stated that the report focused on the deprivation of children, indicating that over 70 percent of children in country are multidimensionally poor.

“The main driver of the poverty rate we are seeing today is the issue of sanitation. It seems sanitation is a challenge in most households, followed by education and housing. These factors are pushing more children into poverty.

“The Report calls for more intervention from stakeholders. The multidimensional approach is beneficial as it highlights specific areas needing attention. If sanitation is a challenge, we can quickly call on policymakers to address these issues,”  he pointed out.

Kanyanda emphasized that it was time for the country to shift its focus from poverty reduction to wealth creation.

Principal Secretary for Economic Planning and Development, Patrick Zimpita mentioned that the government has outlined several focus areas, such as those in the National Youth Policy 2023.

This policy includes interventions like retaining girls in school and implementing child feeding programmes.

“This report is extremely important because, in the past, we focused on Growth Domestic Product (GDP) growth. However, if you say the economy has grown by three percent, does that reflect an improvement in people’s lives?

“We should not rely solely on monetary indicators like GDP numbers. We must  understand the dynamics of the country's growth to ensure that no one, especially children, is left behind. The government will introduce necessary interventions,”  Zimpita said.

UNICEF Representative in Malawi, Shadrick Omol commended government for the Report, noting that it would help stimulate interventions and policy decisions.

The Report indicates that central region has the highest number of multidimensionally poor children, followed by southern region, and then northern region.