Ecological degradation, climate change and exploitative marketing practices that push heavily processed fast food, sugary drinks, alcohol and tobacco are fast taking a toll on the health and future of the children with no country taking adequate protecting measures. 

Painting a gloomy picture on the status of the future of the children, the report, “ A Future for the World’s Children?” , released on Wednesday by a Commission of over 40 child and adolescent health experts from around the world notes with concern that every child worldwide now faces existential threats from climate change and commercial pressures.

The experts have called for a new global movement driven by and for the children.

While the poorest countries need to do more to support their children’s ability to live healthy lives, excessive carbon emissions — disproportionately from wealthier countries — threaten the future of all children, said the Commission convened by the World Health Organization (WHO), UNICEF and The Lancet.

“Despite improvements in child and adolescent health over the past 20 years, progress has stalled, and is set to reverse,” said former Prime Minister of New Zealand and Co-Chair of the Commission, Helen Clark. “It has been estimated that around 250 million children under five years old in low- and middle-income countries are at risk of not reaching their developmental potential, based on proxy measures of stunting and poverty. But of even greater concern, every child worldwide now faces existential threats from climate change and commercial pressures.

“Countries need to overhaul their approach to child and adolescent health, to ensure that we not only look after our children today but protect the world they will inherit in the future,” she added.

The report includes a new global index of 180 countries, comparing performance on child flourishing, including measures of child survival and well-being, such as health, education, and nutrition; sustainability, with a proxy for greenhouse gas emissions, and equity, or income gaps.

According to the report, while the poorest countries need to do more to support their children’s ability to live healthy lives, excessive carbon emissions -disproportionately from wealthier countries - threaten the future of all children.

The only countries on track to beat carbon emission per capita targets by 2030, while also performing fairly (within the top 70) on child flourishing measures are Albania, Armenia, Grenada, Jordan, Moldova, Sri Lanka, Tunisia, Uruguay, and Vietnam, shows the analysis.

“From heads-of-state to local government, from UN leaders to children themselves, this Commission calls for the birth of a new era for child and adolescent health. It will take courage and commitment to deliver. It is the supreme test of our generation,” says Dr Richard Horton, Editor-in-Chief of The Lancet family of journals.