Child poverty and cash transfers: Public opinion endorses an available solution

Abstract

Nearly 50 per cent of people in poverty worldwide are under 18 and disproportionally live in the global South (Black et.al. 2017; UNICEF 2022a). In Latin America, almost half (45 per cent) of children and adolescents experience income poverty, a rate three times higher than among those aged 65 years and older (ECLAC 2022). Income poverty has devastating effects on children’s present and future lives but also represents a missed opportunity for the economic growth and wellbeing of the societies of which they are part. To respond and overcome this dire scenario, evidence suggests that access to regular cash transfers can offer simple and effective protection against child poverty, particularly extreme poverty, defined as the lack of access to a basic food basket. While helping families meet basic needs and often linked to healthcare and school services, transfers also improve child health, education, cognitive progress, and overall well-being, making them a highly beneficial investment for families and society in general (Black et al., 2017). Yet, while cash transfer programmes for vulnerable families with children exist across the region, they reach only a fraction of children in need, and most are far from covering the cost of a basic food basket.