India ranked 77th on a sustainability index that takes into account per capita carbon emissions and ability of children in a nation to live healthy lives and secures 131st spot on a flourishing ranking that measures the best chance at survival and well-being for children, according to a UN-backed report.
The report was released on Wednesday by a commission of over 40 child and adolescent health experts from around the world. It was commissioned by the World Health Organization (WHO), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) and The Lancet medical journal.
In the report assessing the capacity of 180 countries to ensure that their youngsters can survive and thrive, India ranks 77th on the Sustainability Index and 131 on the Flourishing Index, it said.
Flourishing is the geometric mean of Surviving and Thriving. For Surviving, the authors selected maternal survival, survival in children younger than 5 years old, suicide, access to maternal and child health services, basic hygiene and sanitation, and lack of extreme poverty.
For Thriving, the domains were educational achievement, growth and nutrition, reproductive freedom, and protection from violence.
Under the Sustainability Index, the authors noted that promoting today's national conditions for children to survive and thrive must not come at the cost of eroding future global conditions for children's ability to flourish.
The Sustainability Index ranks countries on excess carbon emissions compared with the 2030 target. This provides a convenient and available proxy for a country's contribution to sustainability in future.
The report noted that under realistic assumptions about possible trajectories towards sustainable greenhouse gas emissions, models predict that global carbon emissions need to be reduced from 39·7 giga tonnes to 22·8 gigatonnes per year by 2030 to maintain even a 66 per cent chance of keeping global warming below 1·5°C.
It said that the world's survival depended on children being able to flourish, but no country is doing enough to give them a sustainable future.
"No country in the world is currently providing the conditions we need to support every child to grow up and have a healthy future," said Anthony Costello, Professor of Global Health and Sustainability at University College London, one of the lead authors of the report.
"Especially, they're under immediate threat from climate change and from commercial marketing, which has grown hugely in the last decade," said Costello – former WHO Director of Mother, Child and Adolescent health.
Norway leads the table for survival, health, education and nutrition rates - followed by South Korea and the Netherlands. Central African Republic, Chad and Somalia come at the bottom.
However, when taking into account per capita CO2 emissions, these top countries trail behind, with Norway 156th, the Republic of Korea 166th and the Netherlands 160th.
Each of the three emits 210 per cent more CO2 per capita than their 2030 target, the data shows, while the US, Australia, and Saudi Arabia are among the 10 worst emitters. The lowest emitters are Burundi, Chad and Somalia.
According to the report, the only countries on track to beat CO2 emission per capita targets by 2030, while also performing fairly – within the top 70 – on child flourishing measures are: Albania, Armenia, Grenada, Jordan, Moldova, Sri Lanka, Tunisia, Uruguay and Vietnam.
"More than 2 billion people live in countries where development is hampered by humanitarian crises, conflicts, and natural disasters, problems increasingly linked with climate change," said Minister Awa Coll-Seck from Senegal, Co-Chair of the commission.
The report also highlights the distinct threat posed to children from harmful marketing.
Evidence suggests that children in some countries see as many as 30,000 advertisements on television alone in a single year, while youth exposure to vaping (e-cigarettes) advertisements increased by more than 250 per cent in the US over two years, reaching more than 24 million young people.
Studies in Australia, Canada, Mexico, New Zealand and the US – among many others – have shown that self-regulation has not hampered commercial ability to advertise to children.
Children's exposure to commercial marketing of junk food and sugary beverages is associated with purchase of unhealthy foods and overweight and obesity, linking predatory marketing to the alarming rise in childhood obesity, it said.
The number of obese children and adolescents increased from 11 million in 1975 to 124 million in 2016 – an 11-fold increase, with dire individual and societal costs, the report said.
To protect children, the authors call for a new global movement driven by and for children.
Specific recommendations include stopping CO2 emissions with the utmost urgency, to ensure children have a future on this planet; placing children and adolescents at the centre of global efforts to achieve sustainable development, the report said.
New policies and investment in all sectors to work towards child health and rights; incorporating children's voices into policy decisions and tightening national regulation of harmful commercial marketing, supported by a new Optional Protocol to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, it said.
In a written reply, Minister of State for Home, Hansraj Ahir, informed the Lok Sabha on Tuesday that some media reports indicated that some known terrorists have reportedly been inspired by Dr Naik. However, investigations so far in this regard could not find any evidence against the internationally acclaimed orator.
Comments
My dear Venki...I say that both are not same as u said.. Do u know why?
1. Sadhivi Prachi always gives her hate speech. Like kill them kick them out of India.. Salman khan amir khan.. oh khan yeh khan.. many more as u know...
2. Zakir naik says Islam is pure rest others are not a true.. He doesnt says throw, kick, kill etc etc.. If you have any doubts you check from google bhayya and make it clear.. so dont compare lion and dogs! Lion is lion and dogs are always dogs it will never become lion :D
Zakeer Naik has more Fans - Hindus, Christians than Muslims.
His Fans are mostly highly educated, intellectuals.
He never advocates hatreds, animosities. He says truth which are wrongly practiced not following their own respective scripts like Veda, Geethas.
His knowledge in Hindu scripts are more than any common Swamees, pandiths.
Dear venki,
Your statement shows how much innocent you are. How you can compare prachi with Zakir? Did Zakir hate any religion? he is comapring the religions. He is showing what is in hindu scripts mentioned and what you are practising. Example, in vedas it clearly mention that idol worship should not be done. How many of us worshipping Idol? Did Prachi talk about Veda any time? If you listen her speeches it is spitting venom.
He has working, serving the people even with his all wealth, without seeking any personnel benefit. He has been doing it at least last 30-35years as I know it.
It would have not taken this much time to find any irregular activity if he has been committing such.
If does not need much time to know any anti social activity.
He is very much openly operating his activities obeying all the norms.
He is more popular in Europe and US, other countries than in India.
For some people it is very much difficult to digest his popularity and his fair activities.
Unfortunately those Sanghi brothern or Sanghi sympathizers can understand that he is rescuing them from their unknown mistakes.
Whatever he is doing he is not seeking any worldly benefit.
He has a strong faith in God, his sincere efforts will be rewarded in the other permanent life (which will be after death).
Really every Indian should thank God Almighty for bestowing such sincere person.
May God help us to understand truth and Guide us.
Modi's U turn....
TRUTH PREVAILS AND FALSE WILL PERISH...ALHAMDULILLAH
ZAKIR NAIK BECOMES MORE POPULAR....IN'SHA ALLAH
CHADDIGALIGE BURNOOL BAGYA
It is UNIVERSAL truth that he is innocent and just focusing on ISLAM. May almighty bless with you good always.
It is really good news for Zakir Naik and his followers, I was sure he will come up clean as I follow him last 20 years he always support teaching of Allah and Hadees and prophet's teaching. He never criticize other religion but compares to Islam whenever there was Q&A session anybody asks the question. He respect other religion.
Best of luck ZN and continue your good work.
Where are the saffron mfs who were barking and somebody please shit in mouth......
what is the fate of that Lunatic and his associates who have been shouting from the rooftop 24x7.? Is his Time Now come to an END?
Whenever a genuine Muslim targeted almighty Allah saved them, this is enough to realize a mankind that Allah is only a creator of everything nothing else. So everybody should say in one word that \Allah Hu Akbar, La ilaha Illalah\""
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