The president of the Children’s Platform in the Region, Juana López, urged the authorities this Tuesday to implement actions in Health and Education to identify those under 18 years of age who are in serious social exclusion. «If they tell us that there are 49,000 in severe poverty, but we do not know where they are and what is happening to them, how they can be helped; That is why there must be protocols that involve people to express what is happening,” explained López, after presenting the data at the Las Claras de Murcia convent that shows that the Region is the third autonomous community with the most children in poverty. and the fourth with the most minors in extreme poverty, according to the INE Living Conditions Survey.
López also urged the authorities to create a help network that allows “no child to fall into these thresholds,” as well as create specific policies that fight against the lack of material and meet basic needs. However, he placed great emphasis on improving emergency aid for families who are in this situation. “It cannot be that it takes three or four months for the help to reach the family,” he added. In addition, he requested an increase in subsidies for school meals and to promote rural development and digitalization strategies so that they can more easily access the world of work.
Ricardo Ibarra, director of the Platform of Children’s Organizations of Spain, explained that the Region is the second community with the lowest rate of severe material deprivation in childhood, with an index of 5.3%. It is even lower than that of the Murcian population as a whole, which is 7.2%. However, most of the homes where these minors live cannot keep the home at an adequate temperature, nor can they consider going on vacation for at least one week a year nor can they afford to face unforeseen expenses.
The deterioration of the economy in recent years is taking its toll on minors in the Region. LA VERDAD published last Friday that the percentage of Murcian children and adolescents at risk of poverty or social exclusion this year stood at 41.4%, eight tenths more than last year, while in Spain this rate fell by another eight tenths to reach 32.2%. The Region is the third autonomous community with the highest percentage of minors at risk of poverty. Only the Canary Islands (48.7%) and Andalusia (43%) surpass it. Some 125,000 children and adolescents in the Region are in this situation.
In the ranking of communities by severe poverty rate, the Region is once again at the bottom. It is the fourth with the highest percentage, with 14.1%, which means that some 49,000 Murcian children and adolescents live in households with incomes below 40% of the median income. The regional rate is six tenths higher than the national average (13.5%).
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