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What does the future hold for the world’s children?
In many ways, the future is now. Today’s actions and decisions will determine the future children inherit.
Unfortunately, today's children live in a world fraught with crises, poverty and discrimination. Where far too many are deprived of opportunities to meet their full potential.
We can and must do better.
The future of childhood hangs in the balance.
This year’s State of the World’s Children Report examines the forces and trends shaping our world today and reflects on how they might shape the future.
The report explores three megatrends that will profoundly impact children’s lives between now and 2050: demographics shifts, the climate and environmental crises and frontier technologies.
It also presents three future scenarios – possible outcomes, not predictions – for how children could experience the world of 2050.
As we consider what we can do today, our responsibility is clear: now is the time to shape a better future for every child.
Three megatrends
From the long list of forces and trends shaping the world, this report focuses on three that will inevitably shape the world for children over the next quarter century:
- demographic transitions,
- climate and environmental crises and
- frontier technologies.
Each will impact children’s daily experiences – how they live, learn, interact and develop.
Three future scenarios
To develop a sense of how the megatrends – along with other significant forces and trends – might influence the future of childhood, this year’s State of the World’s Children Report presents three scenarios of what the future might look like for children depending on rates of progress and on the actions of decision-makers.
- A future shaped by business-as-usual trendlines.
- A future shaped by delayed development (in which decision makers choose a more fragmented path, leading to greater inequality and environmental degradation).
- A future shaped by accelerated development (in which decision makers opt for a more inclusive and sustainable path).
What could 2050 look like for children?
Progress made over the last several decades is improving children’s lives and will continue to do so in the future. The trajectories in survival, life expectancy and education completion continue to rise across all three scenarios.
In other aspects of children’s lives, the future appears less hopeful. The world could become a more unequal place, afflicted by conflict and extreme climate events, where the learning crisis continues and far too many children still experience multiple deprivations.
Creating a better future for every child
We can secure the best possible future for all children through decisive, collaborative action.
UNICEF recommends that governments and the public sector, businesses, non-governmental and human rights organizations, and civil society mobilize across three priority areas:
- Prepare for demographic transitions
- Expand climate resilience
- Deliver connectivity and safe design for every child
As we look to 2050, we face a choice. We can continue on our current path, risking a future where millions of children are left behind, or we can choose a different course – one where every child flourishes and shapes the world around them.
Now is the time to shape a better future for every child.
For more information and further details, please click here.
Source: UNICEF