Child Poverty in Lesotho: The challenge and possible responses
Policy note
Highlights
Like many countries in Africa, Lesotho faces significant challenges related to persistent poverty and development. The most recent estimates indicate that 57 per cent of all households live below the national poverty line. There are also reasons to believe that children in Lesotho are disproportionately affected by occurring deprivations like malnutrition, HIV/AIDS, school dropout, under-five mortality and orphanhood.
This objective complements the global development agenda enshrined in Sustainable Development Goal Target 1.2, which aims to halve the proportion of children, men and women living in poverty in all its dimensions by 2030. To support the government’s efforts in this area, UNICEF Lesotho commissioned a study on child poverty, which employs UNICEF’s Multiple Overlapping Deprivation Analysis (MODA) methodology, and the 2014 Lesotho Demographic and Health Survey data.
This policy note summarizes the key findings and policy recommendations from the MODA exercise.
