Article from The Australian - Children don't come first in lucky country, says OECD report

Stephen Lunn, Social affairs writer | October 21, 2008

AUSTRALIA'S prosperity is masking an unpalatable truth - the health and wellbeing of our children lag unacceptably behind those of many developed countries.

More than 7 per cent of Australian children have fewer than 11 books in their family home, we rank in the bottom third of the OECD nations for infant mortality, and we are 21st out of 27 for children eating meals with their parents.

These are just a few of a raft of international indicators of childhood health and wellbeing that reveal the chasm between our perceptions of a prosperous country and the harsh reality, childhood expert Fiona Stanley has warned.

An international comparison of 42measures of childhood wellbeing to be published for the first time today by the Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth shows we rank 13th out of 23 OECD countries on childhood mental health. Indigenous children fare disproportionately badly across a range of indicators from infant mortality through teenage pregnancy and exposure to poverty.

Professor Stanley, chair of the alliance board, told The Australian that the nation "continues to accept mediocrity for our young people" at a time when we top the rankings of some global prosperity indices.

"I'm disappointed in the way Australia has become smug about being top of the pops in wealth and sport, but for the most important element for the future of the country, our children, we're way behind the eight ball," she said.

"An international prosperity index published just last week had Australia the No1 one country in the world for life satisfaction, but how can we be so self-satisfied when there are so many indicators of childhood wellbeing that are in the middle of the range?

"We need to be asking how an affluent and successful country like Australia can be so average when it comes to raising our children and whether we're prepared to continue to accept mediocrity for our young people."

The ARACY report card, titled The Wellbeing of Australian Children, to be launched in Canberra today by Families Minister Jenny Macklin, will feed into the Government's policy agenda focusing on universal access to early childhood education, improving responses to childhood obesity and mental health issues, and combating indigenous disadvantage across the spectrum.

It notes Australian children are four times more likely to be living in poverty than a child in Finland, with 12 per cent of children in Australian households where the income is less than 50 per cent of the national median on the most recent measure.

About 7.2 per cent of children report having fewer than 11 books in their home, a figure that sits at 19 per cent for Aboriginal children.

A spokeswoman for Ms Macklin said last night the Rudd Government was committed to a child-centred approach to family policy and that the ARACY report card would "provide vital baseline data".

"Children are our most important asset and we are determined to make children's interests the driving force of our decision-making for families," the spokeswoman said. "This is reflected in the Government's commitment to introduce a paid paternity leave scheme, the development of a Child Protection Framework and increasing the child care tax rebate from 30 to 50 per cent in our first budget."

She said the indigenous indicators are "shocking" and closing the gap between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians was an "urgent national priority".

Rob Moodie, professor of global health at the University of Melbourne's Nossal Institute and an ARACY board member, said obesity was one example of where we fell short in looking after children's wellbeing, to the point where the life expectancy of future generations was about to start falling.

Professor Moodie said that governments, communities, business and parents must work together to provide better options for the nation's children.

"We need to value teachers, we need to make sure there are safe public spaces set aside for kids to be active," he said. "We need to get kids walking to school, so they can get both exercise and get to know other children."

Professor Stanley agreed the response had to move beyond polite dinner party conversation.

"Society has to start changing what it values."

She labelled rising psychological problems among children and young people as a particular concern, one that "just shouldn't be happening in a successful country".

From The Australian News Online.