New Zealand Urged To Increase Spending on Disadvantaged Children

The report titled ‘Doing Better for Children’ was released by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and provides analysis on how much OECD governments are spending on child wellbeing.

The report compares New Zealand with 29 OECD member countries and concludes that New Zealand:
Spends less than the OCED average on young children
Has the highest rate of suicide for children aged 15-19
Has overall child mortality rates above OECD average
Has poor immunisation rates for measles and whooping cough
Needs to take a stronger policy focus on child poverty and health.
The OCED report concludes that New Zealand should substantially increase spending on young disadvantaged children. International research supports this as the best way generate positive change and achieve fairer outcomes.

Further information including a summary, key data on child well-being, the New Zealand and other countries' highlights is available here: http://www.oecd.org/els/social/childwellbeing