Rapid Urbanisation, Economic Growth and the Well-being of Children

In Rapid Urbanisation, Economic Growth and the Wellbeing of Children, World Vision has examined the basic question: How much do we know about the state of urban child wellbeing after parallel periods of sustained urbanisation and economic growth?

The report finds that, despite two decades of strong economic growth in a significant number of developing countries, it cannot be said with any confidence that urban children, particularly the poorest, are clearly better off. In part, this is due to inadequate data on even some basic elements of child welfare in urban environments.

As well as calling for broadening and deepening the range of official data collected, the report points out the opportunity  for international NGOs to test data tools and collect data from their own areas of operation to contribute to a better understanding the state of children in today’s urban areas.