For children and youth

World Cup Lineup

In the first round of this year’s World Cup, Iran is playing against Mexico, Portugal and Angola. Let’s take a closer look at those countries to see how the situation of children compares to the situation in Iran:

Mexico is one of three countries that make up the continent of North America. It has a population of over 105 million and about 43 per cent of those people are children under the age of 18. Many people are poor and therefore many children have to work to earn a living and help their families.

Portugal is located west of Spain, in south-western Europe, and borders on the Atlantic Ocean. The country is a member of the European Union. All children in Portugal attend primary school and about 93 per cent of the population is literate.

Angola is a country in southern Africa, rich in oil, diamonds and other natural resources. A prolonged civil war ended about three years ago and the country is still suffering from the after-effects. Poverty is high, many children do not go to school and diseases like malaria and cholera take many lives.

One of the statistics used to judge the well-being of children in a country is called the ‘under-5 mortality rate’. This is an indication of the number of children who die before reaching their fifth birthday.

In Iran, the rate in 2004 was 38. That means for every 1,000 babies born alive, 38 died before the age of five. In Mexico, the rate was 28 and in Portugal, the rate was 5. But in Angola, 260 children out of every 1,000 children die before their fifth birthday. That’s more than one out of every four children!

In Portugal, most people can expect to live to about 78 years old. Average life expectancy in Iran is 71 and in Mexico it is 75. Those are pretty good numbers, especially considering that in the United States people can expect to live to 78 and in Canada until 80. But if you are born in Angola, you can only expect to live until age 41!

To find out more about what UNICEF is doing in these countries, try these links:

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