March 1, 2012

Nearly half of the world's children are growing up in slums, and the numbers are only expected to increase as the world's cities continue growing, according to UNICEF’s State of the World's Children 2012 report. The agency projects the urban population of 7 billion to balloon to include two-thirds of the more than 9 billion people expected to live on earth by 2050. But the quality of life in towns and cities, particularly in those of the developing and emerging countries, tends to be poor. Ever more families are moving into the world's cities, so already one in three children is growing up in a slum. In many of the world's slums up to 50 percent of children are malnourished and excluded from medical care and education, despite the fact that cities generally offer more schools, playgrounds, and hospitals than rural areas. The number of malnourished and undernourished children also is increasing. In India, 54 percent of the poorest children in slums are physically or mentally disabled because of inadequate nourishment. Unhygienic and cramped living conditions lead to more epidemics, tuberculosis, diarrhea, and pneumonia.