New Zealand has plummeted in this year’s children’s rights index
A European advocacy group has placed New Zealand 158th in a field of 165 countries for children’s rights, putting the country on a par with much of central Africa and Saudi Arabia.
The Amsterdam based Kids Rights Foundation and Erasmus University measured five key domains in the 2017 KidsRights Index:-
1. Right to Life:
2. Right to Health
3. Right to Education
4. Right to Protection
5. Enabling Environment for Child Rights
This is a global ranking that charts countries’ performance records for children’s rights. The scope of the report is unique in that it collects data from various reputable sources and identifies global themes and trends in the field of children’s rights.
Portugal is placed top in the index due to its strong performances in the areas of child legislation, health and education.
Notable examples of under performing countries include the United Kingdom, which fell from11th to 156 place, and New Zealand which plummeted from 45th down to the depths of 158th. The country has been urged to do more to foster the rights of its youngest generation.
Overall, the Index shows that industrialised nations are falling drastically short of allocating sufficient budgets towards creating a stable environment for children’s rights. Although many poorer states deserve praise for their efforts relative to their budgets and means, it is alarming that the industrialised world is neglecting its leadership responsibilities and failing to invest in the rights of children to the best of its abilities.
Consider, for example, the industrialised nations the UK and New Zealand, which this year both hold bottom-ten positions following very poor performances in domain 5, i.e. Child Rights Environment. The methodology for obtaining the final score in the Index is such that extremely poor performances in one domain cannot be compensated by higher scores in other areas, as all children’s rights are equally important. Extreme underperformance in one of the domains therefore creates an insurmountable bottleneck that automatically demotes the concerned country to the lower-most region of the Index… source
New Zealand…should be able to invest more in children’s right, but fail(s) to do so sufficiently…source
New Zealand’s record
New Zealand’s walk of shame:
New Zealand’s record in the 2016 study showed six times the lowest score for non-discrimination, best interests of the child, respect for the views of the child, enabling legislation, budget, and data. Furthermore, the country has no maximum or average scores on record.
Three of the indicators from 2016 were the same as they were in 2011 (respect for the views of the child, enabling legislation, and state-civil society cooperation) while two (best interests and data) improved from non-available to the lowest score possible.
New Zealand’s scores for non-discrimination and budget fell from an average to the lowest score, but itsscores remain incomplete – there was no score for state-civil society cooperation in either 2011 or 2016.
Thinking about emigrating to provide a better life for your children? Why not pick from one of these countries
and give these a miss…
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The most remote country on earth has been failing its youth for years (our many youth crime and poverty articles are a testament to that) but now poverty among it’s children is becoming officially recognised.
Children in New Zealand are in more hardship than in any comparable European country, according to New Zealand’s own Ministry of Social Development.
While some European countries are excluded, Estonia, Slovenia, Slovakia and the Czech Republic are included because “their rankings are now often in the same ballpark as New Zealand” (source MOSD). Actually, their rankings are far better than New Zealand’s:… read on
Amnesty International; UNICEF and OECD: NZ’s Human Rights Record Stained by Child Poverty, Lack of Investment in its Young:
New Zealand’s high level of child poverty, violence against women and a proposed law affecting asylum seekers came under fire in Amnesty International’s Annual Report on the state of the world’s human rights.
New Zealand faces most criticism within the country for its high levels of child poverty, according to Grant Bayldon, Executive Director of Amnesty International in New Zealand.
“The mention of up to 270,000 children living in poverty in this global report is a stain on New Zealand’s human rights record.
It further reinforces the need for New Zealand to protect and respect all human rights in New Zealand law.
“States have obligations to protect, respect and fulfill (sic) rights for all people, for those living in poverty, and also asylum seekers and refugees…
A UNICEF report published last month also criticised New Zealand’s record forchild well being across a variety of measures, including ranking it 21st out of 35 developed countries for levels of child poverty… read on
New Zealand Is Conspicuous by its Absence from the Economist’s Safe Cities Index:
Zealand is often marketed to migrants, students and tourists as a “safe place”. However, the country has a problem with crime, poverty and digital security that is more comparable to what one would find in a developing country.
If you’re looking for a safe place in these turbulent times you may wish to look for somewhere other than New Zealand.
The Economist Safe Cities Index is a report that takes account of 40 qualitative and quantitative indicators under 4 main areas : Personal safety, Infrastructure Safety, Health Security, and Digital Security. It focuses on 50 countries selected for their regional representation and availability of data.
You probably won’t come across the Safe Cities Index in the New Zealand media. Not a single location in New Zealand made the cut… read on
Isolated and Lonely; New Zealanders Fare Worst For Social Connectedness: Sovereign Wellbeing Index:
The latest biennial Sovereign Wellbeing Index has been published, and it’s still not good news for New Zealand, with no improvement since the 2013 survey.
It appears the lack of a social life, and an almost negligible sense of community, is affecting people’s wellbeing in the most remote country on earth (something to consider if you’re from Europe and leaving friends and family to emigrate to New Zealand). Having a support network and somewhere positive to raise your kids is far more important than you’d realise
Kiwis are socially disconnected and it is taking a toll on their wellbeing, according to a new study.
The Sovereign Wellbeing Index 2015 results found almost 40 per cent of New Zealanders only met with others socially once a month or less… read on
A shocking new report from the Salvation Army has found that half of the homeless people in Auckland are under 16 years old, and the government isn’t pulling its weight to help them. Thirty children were found living in cars, and others in garages and camp grounds in in locations sampled by the Salvation Army.
Some of the homeless have waited for more than six months for state housing, but half had never had contact from the Ministry of Social Development.…read on
Migrant Tales – hundreds of first hand accounts of the migrant experience of New Zealand
E2NZ.org 
As someone who has the choice almost anywhere in the world to raise kids, I find it appalling that you would support and promote such nonsense. New Zealand is going through a financial problem and this problem started in the 1980s like most western countries and DOES NOT need a government to fix it… merely get out of the way.
Statistics don’t lie. So even in the face of evidence.”The agony of the 41,000 homeless, 10,000 in prison. 1600 die each year from the cold. The 300,000 in poverty. The 1500 commiting suicide. The 100’s of thousands locked out of home ownership. None of that mattered to 46% of voters, voting National on Saturday”. Martyn Bradley, 24 September 2017. This is from the last three years of a National Government and will continue to skyrocket. You obviously want to be ignorant and pretend this doesn’t exist. Good one mate. Yeah Right. But I guess when your not on on the front line dealing with it, everyday. Not everyone can get up and leave NZ. You say it’s not the governments problem but guess who sets the minimum wage and social policies. Who is able to stop foriegn ownership. I could go on. Yeah I was around in the 80s, but it is much much worse now.
I would say that this problem started in the 80s because of the Government getting out of the way. That is why we are living (here in NZ) in a highly unregulated economy, which is leading to these very poor outcomes for children (amongst other things)
You’re awesome ,you say that N.Z is going through a problem which started in the 1980s ,well that’s quite some problem there mate ,being that it’s almost 2018 that’s a 27 year problem which it’s going through,to me after 5 years it would be a systematic problem after 10 years it would be ….well a cultural problem at least ,after 15 years it would be a generational problem after 20 years it would be an accepted normal and after 25 years it would be the reality it is today ! Just because all the cogs move at the speed of a snail in N.Z doesn’t mean it’s right .
No one cares about any of this in New Zealand, as long as they have their jobs, homes and money they don’t think they have to care. Trouble is, in New Zealand, most of the population are only one paycheck from financial ruin and they won’t even admit that, so worrying about the rather obvious poor living in the streets, and the women with black eyes, kids with no shoes or warm clothes out in the rain, no school lunches in their empty schoolbags is not something Kiwis will do anything about, other than to deny it all!
Scary comment, but true.
Trouble is, in New Zealand, most of the population are only one paycheck from financial ruin and they won’t even admit that
Image: Morgan Freeman “He’s right you know”
http://www.interest.co.nz/kiwisaver/65569/quarter-new-zealanders-would-burn-through-their-savings-within-month-if-their-main
A quarter of New Zealanders would burn through their savings within a month if their main source of income was lost, a MasterCard survey suggests
Posted in KiwiSaver July 25, 2013 – 10:43am, Gareth Vaughan
Image sourced from Shutterstock.com
A quarter of New Zealanders have such meagre savings they’d be gone within a month if their main source of income dried up, according to a MasterCard survey.
MasterCard says that although New Zealand’s savings culture is improving, with almost 9 in 10 people, or 89%, intending to save more or a similar amount in the coming six months as they did in the previous six months, just 26% of survey respondents believe their savings wouldn’t last a month if their main source of income disappeared.
Savings? What savings? Most Kiwis are in debt up to their eyeballs and the vast majority of credit cards are almost permanently maxed out. A friend of mine was a typical example. When he and his wife left NZ for Australia, they had over $50,000 of consumer debt! And, this wasn’t from being extravagant or lazy. Both of them worked REALLY hard. The debt had slowly built up just trying to survive. Another couple I know, who remained in NZ, was over $120,000 in debt when they declared bankruptcy; they were hard workers too, but in the end, they ended up with NOTHING!
With the wages being so low and the cost of living so high, the vast majority of people in NZ simply don’t make enough money to live on, even with all the government handouts. People are forced to either borrow to make up the deficit and dig a hole they will NEVER get out of while remaining in NZ; skimp on the essentials and at some point end up with a serious situation when this catches up to them; rip off other people through fraud and other kinds of deception and theft, or leave the country.
Of these options, the only one that WON’T cause long term problems is to go live in another country.
Yes ,get sick in N.Z and go visit WINZ ,they’ll set you straight about where you really live ,it’s a 3rd world shithole with 1st world prices ,takes a little disaster to make the average nz idiot that they are living in a fools paradise ,no money for you after you no pay taxes.
Is this really true. Always thought NZ was wonderful. Was I blind
NZ is wonderful if you have lots of money. The end.