The health and future of children in every country is threatened by climate change, ecological degradation, migrating populations, conflict, pervasive inequalities, and predatory commercial and marketing practices (according to the WHO, UNICEF and the Lancet)

In its report of 18 February, a commission comprised of the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations children’s agency (UNICEF), and medical journal the Lancet find that “today’s children face an uncertain future”, with every child facing “existential threats.”

The commission compares 180 countries and provides a list of the best countries for children to flourish in their early years. When per capita carbon emissions per country are factored in, the top countries on the child flourishing ranking fall in the index. The only countries that are both (1) on track to reach their CO₂ emission per capita targets by 2030 and (2) performing on child flourishing measures (within the top 70) are: Albania, Armenia, Grenada, Jordan, Moldova, Sri Lanka, Tunisia, Uruguay and Vietnam. The report also describes the risks to children from harmful marketing and predatory commercial practices, and calls on governments to put measures in place “to ensure children receive their rights and entitlements now and a liveable planet in the years to come”.