Why in News?

• Recently, ‘A Future for the World’s Children’ report was released jointly by the World Health Organization (WHO), UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and The Lancet medical journal.

About the Report:

• The report calculates the Flourishing Index and Sustainability Index of 180 countries.
• India secures 131^strank on a flourishing index that measures the best chance at survival and well-being for children.
• Further, India ranked 77^thon a sustainability index that takes into account per capita carbon emissions and the ability of children in a nation to live healthy lives.

What is Flourishing Index?

• Flourishing is the geometric mean of Surviving and Thriving.
• The parameter of Surviving considers maternal survival, survival in children younger than 5 years old, suicide, access to maternal and child health services, basic hygiene, sanitation, and lack of extreme poverty.
• The parameter of Thriving considers educational achievement, growth and nutrition, reproductive freedom, and protection from violence.
• Norway leads the table for survival, health, education and nutrition rates – followed by the Republic of Korea and the Netherlands.
• The Central African Republic, Chad and Somalia rank at the bottom.
• It also mentioned that the world’s survival depended on children being able to flourish, but no country is doing enough to give them a sustainable future.
• The Index has linked an aspect of harmful marketing of junk food and sugary beverages with the alarming rise in childhood obesity.
• Thus to protect children, it has called for a new global movement driven by and for children.

What is Sustainability Index?

• The Sustainability Index ranks countries on the basis of excess carbon emissions compared with the 2030 target.
• It also states that 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 leading countries in the Flourishing Index trail behind in the case of the Sustainability Index, with Norway (156^th), the Republic of Korea (166^th) and the Netherlands (160^th).
• Each of the three emits 210 per cent more CO2 per capita than their 2030 target.
• The only countries on track in Flourishing as well as in Sustainability Index are Albania, Armenia, Grenada, Jordan, Moldova, Sri Lanka, Tunisia, Uruguay and Vietnam.
• The lowest emitters are Burundi, Chad and Somalia whereas the U.S, Australia, and Saudi Arabia are among the 10 Worst Emitters.

What are its Recommendations?

• It suggests the elimination of CO2 emissions with the utmost urgency and requests to place children and adolescents at the centre of global efforts to achieve sustainable development.
• New policies and investment in all sectors to work towards child health and rights with the incorporation of children’s voices into policy decisions.