What is the child poverty rate in New Zealand?
In the year ended June 2020, 18.4 percent of New Zealand children (210,500, or about 1 in 5) lived in households with less than 50 percent of the median equivalised disposable household income after deducting housing costs and compared to the median income from the baseline year.
What are the main reasons for child poverty in New Zealand?
Primary causes Opinion was evenly divided on the primary cause of child poverty in New Zealand: • Forty percent said it was due to economic factors including unemployment, low wages and rising living costs. > The ever-increasing monthly power bills that the government won’t regulate or force down.
How bad is child poverty in NZ?
In the year ended June 2019, about one in seven New Zealand children (168,500) lived in households with less than 50 percent of the median equivalised disposable household income before housing costs are deducted.
When did child poverty become an issue in NZ?
Child poverty rates rose sharply in the late 1980s and the early 1990s. During this period, inequality rose more in New Zealand than in any of the 20 Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries for which comparable data is available.
How much of NZ is in poverty?
15%
Figures from 2016 show that about 15% of the population lives in poverty, compared to 9% in the 1980s, and 22% in 2004. Growing inequality is confirmed by Statistics New Zealand which keeps track of income disparity using the P80/20 ratio.
What is the New Zealand government doing about child poverty?
The Child Poverty Reduction Act requires Governments to set and publish longer-term targets (ten years), as well as intermediate targets (every three years), for a set of ‘primary’ measures of child poverty. There are currently three primary measures, with reporting on a fourth beginning in 2025/26.
How bad is poverty in New Zealand?
Figures from 2016 show that about 15% of the population lives in poverty, compared to 9% in the 1980s, and 22% in 2004. Growing inequality is confirmed by Statistics New Zealand which keeps track of income disparity using the P80/20 ratio.
Has child poverty improved in NZ?
Child poverty measures have improved overall since 2018, but Māori and Pacific children continue to bear the brunt. For the year ended June 2020, 14.6 per cent of children – 167,100 – lived in households with income less than 50 per cent of the median before housing costs.
How many Maori children are there in NZ?
Māori families and households
| Household Type | Households | Dependant children |
|---|---|---|
| Multi-family household | 14,526 | 24,980 |
| Multi-person household | 15,918 | |
| One-person household | 24,957 | |
| Total | 223,938 | 216,292 |
How much of NZ is poverty?
How many children live in poverty in New Zealand?
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Child poverty is preventing many New Zealand children from living healthy, productive lives. As many as 25 percent – up to about 265,000 New Zealand children – currently live in poverty. These children deserve the opportunity to live healthy lives, learn in school and take part in normal childhood activities.
Who is the Commissioner of children in New Zealand?
At the request of the Children’s Commissioner, Dr Russell Wills, the Expert Advisory Group on Solutions to Child Poverty has explored how New Zealand can reduce child poverty and mitigate its effects.
What does it mean to be in child poverty?
It means missing out on many of the things which the majority of children take for granted: adequate and nutritious food, good shoes and clothing, a separate bed, a warm, dry house, participation in school trips and occasional holidays away from home.