Israel has the highest level of child poverty in the world’s 41 most developed countries, according to a United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) report released yesterday. Some 27.5 per cent of children in the country live in poverty, higher than rates in Mexico, the report showed.

The report, “Fairness for Children: A league table of inequality in child well-being in rich countries,” documents inequalities in child well-being amongst EU countries and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

In all indicators outlined in the report; income, education, health and life satisfaction, Israel ranked amongst the lowest, ranking last in terms of health inequality.

“Understanding the differences among countries in how far the most disadvantaged children fall behind their average peers can provide some insight into the conditions or interventions that may help to reduce the gaps,” said Dr Sarah Cook, director of UNICEF’s Innocenti Research Centre in Florence, Italy.

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