UNICEF has published in Bulgarian language the regional report entitled "The Situation of Children in Europe and Central Asia", which provides an overview and general analysis of the situation of children in the region, including Bulgaria.
According to the results of a survey released Thursday by UNICEF on the occasion of the launch of UNICEF Parenting Month, affordable childcare and quality pre-school education are among the top priorities of parents in Bulgaria and 12 other countries in Europe and Central Asia.
UNICEF Representative in Bulgaria Christina de Bruin presented the data on Thursday during a joint press conference at the National Statistical Institute in Sofia. She said that today's information age provides the opportunity to collect more diverse and higher quality data on a larger scale than ever before, and when this data is put in the hands of decision-makers, it can deliver more powerful and effective change for children.
Bulgaria is in the top three countries with the highest share of children at risk of poverty and social exclusion in the European Union - 33%. The percentage is similar for Spain, in Romania children at risk of poverty and social exclusion are 41.5%. The countries with the lowest share of children at risk are Slovenia with 11%, Finland with 13.2% and the Czechia with 13.3%.
"In October 2022, the Bulgarian government adopted a comprehensive National Action Plan for the implementation of the European Child Guarantee by 2030. The plan will be a major instrument in achieving the national target of reducing the number of children at risk of poverty or social exclusion by 197,000 by 2030. A key priority for UNICEF is to support national efforts to effectively implement the European Child Guarantee and to lift children permanently out of poverty in Bulgaria," de Bruin said.
Health inequalities are also immense. In Bulgaria, the percentage of out-of-pocket expenditure as a percentage of current healthcare expenditure remains high at 39%.
In Bulgaria, the Climate Risk Index for children is relatively high at 3.9, with Iceland, Luxembourg, Finland and Sweden among the lowest climate risk countries and Albania and Tajikistan among the highest.
/LG/
news.modal.text
