Children First Canada reveals top 10 threats facing kids across the country
A national call to action released today asks federal political leaders to address the top 10 issues threatening Canada’s children including poverty, abuse, obesity, suicide, bullying, and preventable injuries. According to the research, of the 8 million children in Canada, at least one third do not enjoy a safe and healthy childhood.
“Raising Canada: Election 2019,” was released by the national non-profit Children First Canada with research from the O’Brien Institute for Public Health and endorsed by the Council of Champions – Canada’s leading children’s charities, kids’ hospitals, research institutes and major corporations that invest in children’s issues. It pinpoints the top 10 threats to children’s health and safety and calls on the leaders of federal political parties and all candidates seeking office to take urgent action. The paper also calls on Canadians to use their vote to urge federal leaders to take action to improve the lives of children and invest today for the sake of all Canadians.
“The majority of Canadians rank this as a top 5 or top 10 country to raise a child, but the reality is that Canada ranks 25th out of 41 OECD countries for children’s wellbeing,” says Sara Austin, founder and Lead Director of Children First Canada. “As a society, we have largely ignored the harsh realities that affect our most vulnerable, and that needs to change. As Canadians prepare to head to the polls, now is the time to demand that these challenges can be tackled.”
Top 10 threats to childhood, according to Raising Canada: Election 2019:
ACCIDENTS AND PREVENTABLE INJURIES are the leading cause of death for children
SUICIDE is the second leading cause of death for Canadian children. Canada was one of the five countries with the highest teenage suicide rates, at a rate of over 10 per 100,000 teens.
CHILD ABUSE: One third of Canadians experience some form of child abuse before the age of 16. Child abuse costs Canadians an estimated $23 billion annually
POVERTY: Nearly 10% of Canadian children grow up in poverty, and nearly 50% of Indigenous children.
INFANT MORTALITY: Canada ranks 30th amongst 44 OECD countries for infant mortality. All European OECD countries have a lower infant mortality rate than Canada’s.
OBESITY: A quarter of children are obese and only one third get enough daily physical activity
FOOD INSECURITY: More 10% of families with children under 6 years saying experience food insecurity
IMMUNIZATION: A quarter of children are not fully immunized by age two.
DISCRIMINATION profoundly impacts the health of Indigenous and racialized children.
BULLYING: More than 10 percent of 15-17 year-olds experienced bullying online, and one in five children and youth (age 15-20) experienced cyberstalking, cyberbullying, or both.
Raising Canada: Election 2019 echoes the priorities set out in the Canadian Children’s Charter developed by Children First Canada with input from thousands of children and youth across the country. The document lays a roadmap for urgent action to respect, protect and fulfill the rights of every child in Canada.
Other calls to action in the report released today include:
The appointment of an independent federal Commission for Children and Youth to raise the profile of children in Canada
A pan-Canadian strategy for children led by the federal government in consultation with the provinces and territories that would tackle the top 10 threats to children’s health and wellbeing and ensure the full implementation of the Canadian Children’s Charter and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
A Children’s Budget to ensure adequate resources are directed toward addressing the top 10 threats to childhood