More than 40% of children in low and middle income countries face developmental problems because of extreme poverty, experts warn today.
The papers appear in The Lancet today (5 October). Professor Maureen Black of the University of Maryland, USA, and colleagues state: "Two hundred and fifty million children (43%) younger than five years in low-income and middle-income countries are at risk of not reaching their developmental potential."
This figure has decreased from having decreased from approximately 280 million in 2004.
The authors add: "Early childhood development programmes vary in coordination and quality, with inadequate and inequitable access, especially for children younger than three years.
"There is therefore an urgent need to increase multisectoral coverage of quality programming that incorporates health, nutrition, security and safety, responsive caregiving, and early learning."
Although substantial advances have been made since 2000, new neuroscientific evidence is linking early adversity and nurturing care with brain development and function throughout the life course. This means that children who do not meet their developmental potential may forfeit up to a quarter of adult earnings, the experts warn.
"Progress has been made in reducing the number of children exposed to stunting or poverty between 2004 and 2010, but this is still not enough," they conclude. "Scaling up of effective interventions targeting the most vulnerable children is urgently needed."
Series author Professor Gary Darmstadt of Stanford University, USA, adds: "Our economic analysis shows that the cost of inaction is huge, and in many countries far exceeds their spending on health. Supporting nurturing care is a wise investment, and one that should be prioritised in all countries."
Lu, C. et al. Risk of poor development in young children in low-income and middle-income countries: an estimation and analysis at the global, regional, and country level. The Lancet 5 October 2016 doi: 10.1016/S2214-109X(16)30266-2 [abstract]
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