International Children’s Day

The Institute for Sociology of the Slovak Academy of Sciences published its survey on the occasion of International Children's Day. As it shows, the situation of children in Slovakia remains less favourable despite the fact that the economic situation is improving and the number of people at risk of poverty or social exclusion is decreasing. Lasting poverty among children under the age of 18 is twice as high as in the rest of the population. The risk of poverty in households with three and more children has risen to 35,4% and is higher than the European average. The lower level of social transfers, leading to a weaker protection of families with more than three children does not only reflect the limited possibilities of the Slovak Republic's budget. "It is also based on the fact that the social protection policy regarding the protection of people with no salaries has been based for over 20 years on the idea that benefits should be low enough to motivate adults to look for jobs, and that not being able to meet children's basic needs sufficiently is used as a tool to support employment and education in responsible citizenship," concluded Zuzana Kusá from the Institute for Sociology of the Slovak Academy of Sciences.