Inequity in Child Health as a Global Issue

The Issue. Poverty, violence, lack of education, abuse and exploitation, and refugee status are among the primary determinants of the health of children worldwide. There are 1. 3 billion people living on less than US 1 per day. Half the world’s population, 3 billion people, live on less than US 1. 30 per day. Of the 4. 4 billion people who live in developing countries, 60% lack access to sanitation, 33% lack clean water, 20% have no health care, and 20% do not have enough dietary energy and protein. 1 The world’s 225 richest people have a combined wealth equivalent to the annual income of the poorest 2. 5 billion people, nearly half of the world’s population. 1 This article describes a number of the social, political, and environmental factors impacting children in the developing (southern hemisphere) world and how these are affected by actions taken in the developed (northern hemisphere) world.