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Beyond the numbers: The impact of crisis on children

01 Aug 2022

  • The revelations of a survey by Save the Children
By Sumudu Chamara Although the prevailing economic decline is viewed as a mere economic crisis, it entails a large number of diverse social issues too, and those willing to assist Sri Lanka should be informed of these issues. According to a survey conducted by child rights organisation Save the Children, these issues range from lack of nutritious meals to long-term disruption to education and access to healthcare services.  The survey, conducted from May to June this year, revealed the impacts of the prevailing economic crisis on household economies, obtaining of services, and children, among others. The survey, titled “Rapid Needs Assessment: June 2022”, focused on the current economic situation of over 2,300 households from nine districts of Sri Lanka, namely, Kilinochchi, Mullaitivu, Trincomalee, Anuradhapura, Colombo, Ratnapura, Badulla, Nuwara Eliya, and Monaragala. A total of 2,309 adults from 2,309 households were interviewed during the survey, and among them were 1,149 (49.8%) women, 1,145 (49.6%) men, and 15 (0.6%) persons who preferred to not reveal their gender. Of the respondents, 68.8% were the head and/or the primary income earner of the households. Objectives of the survey include helping humanitarian actors in the country to be informed on and programme to scale the prioritised needs across the sectors, and to ensure best practices in emergency humanitarian responses to help the targeted populations in Sri Lanka. In addition, the survey is expected to be used to inform donors and development partners of the present situation of the matters the survey looked into, and to encourage them to strategically channel funding to key priority areas to build the household’s capacity to overcome the economic shocks, according to Save the Children. Poverty, income, and expenses The survey used four indicators (out of a set of 10 indicators known as Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) for Sri Lanka) – i.e. cement/concrete, sand/mud/wood/grass/tarpaulin floor being used for the floors of the house; not owning any transport or only owning a motorcycle or bicycle to support mobility; having only a television and/or a radio as a household’s major stationary assets, or not having any major stationary assets at all; using firewood, coal, animal waste, or grass for cooking as their major energy source – as indicators that a household is economically poor.  According to the index, 44% of the target population are economically poor while 56% are non-poor. Female-headed households are more likely to be economically poor (48%) than male-headed households (around 42.6%). Survey findings showed that the Kilinochchi district has a significantly higher proportion of poor households (77%) as compared to all other districts, while the Colombo district had a significantly lower proportion of poor households (18%) compared to all other districts. In nine out of 10 households, according to the survey, the household head is involved in income generation. The average monthly income per household as of May/June 2022 had been reported as Rs. 28,755. Almost half (49%) of the household heads earn their income from temporary jobs (seasonal employment), while close to another quarter (23%) gain income from salary/permanent jobs. Other main sources of income obtained by the household head/primary income earner include crop and agriculture sales (10.7%) and business/trading services (6.7%). Only 2.6% of household heads do not work, the report said, adding that 7.3% receive remittances, livestock sales, pensions, or other forms of Government assistance, benefits, or payments. Very few (2.5%) of the households have social safety net support (Samurdhi and elderly payment), the report noted, adding that most of these households were from Trincomalee (11). While 65% of households saw the spouse working alongside the household head, the household head was the only worker in the remainder of households. Similar to the head of households, temporary/seasonal jobs (13.8%) and salary/permanent jobs (11.2%) made up the highest proportions of employment aside from household work (18.6%), the report read. With regard to the average monthly expenditure, the report said: “Households reported spending an average of 71% of their average monthly income on food. The average of total household expenditure is Rs. 50,000, which is 75% more than the current average monthly income (Rs. 29,000).” Impacts of economic crisis The survey also looked into how the prevailing economic crisis has affected the interviewed households. According to the findings, the vast majority of households (85.1%) had reported losing income since the economic crisis. The report said that nearly three out of five households (58.1%) have lost more than half of their income, while one in 10 households (10.9%) had reported losing all of their income. In addition, almost half (47.2%) of the households had reported losing more than half of their income since the economic crisis. More than one quarter (27.3%) of households had reported losing less than half of their income, while only 14.9% had not reported losing any income.  The report also highlighted that compared to the same month last year, more than one out of three households (35.3%) had indicated that they no longer have income, and more than two in five households (43%) had said that this is due to retrenchment or a job change. A total of 15% of households had indicated having about the same level of income because more family members have become involved in household income generation. Moreover, the report said that income loss has been more severe for economically poor households, and that significantly more poor households than non-poor households had lost more than half of their income since the crisis. In addition, it was stated that significantly more households whose head of households gain their income from salary/permanent jobs reported no loss of income since the economic crisis as compared to other sources of income where the average is 11% indicating no loss. According to statistics, significantly more households with the head of households in agriculture production and sales had reported losing more than half or all of their income as compared to those with seasonal employment or permanent salaries.  With regard to income loss by area, the report said that significantly more households in Mullaitivu and Monaragala had reported losing all of their income as compared to other districts, while significantly more households in Nuwara Eliya, Kilinochchi, and Anuradhapura had reported losing more than half of their income as compared to other districts.  With regard to income loss by gender of the head of households, the report said that significantly more female-headed households lost all of their income than male-headed households, while significantly more male-headed households (49%) lost more than half of their income than female-headed households. Meeting basic needs The survey also looked into how the impacts of the economic crisis have affected households’ ability to meet basic needs such as food and health, among others. According to the findings, even though about half (49%) of the households had been able to meet all or most of their basic needs – food, non-food, water, shelter, and health – the other half had only been able to meet some or none for at least one of the basic needs. The top two priority needs highlighted by 80% of the households included education for children and food.  With regard to food needs, the report pointed out that when it comes to the ability to meet food needs, less than one third (31%) had noted being able to fully meet all their needs. Two in five (41%) had been able to meet most of their needs, while more than one quarter (28%) had only been able to meet some of it. Around 0.4% of the households met none of their needs. In addition, two in three (66%) respondents had noted their households having to rely on less preferred or less expensive foods at least once in the week prior to the survey, where over one quarter (28%) of them had to use this coping strategy every day of the prior week. Two in three households (66.3%) had had to adjust their children’s eating habits in the 14 days prior to the survey.  The report noted: “Over half of all children (54%) had to eat less preferred food. Over one-third (35%) of children had to reduce their child’s quantity of food intake. About one in 10 (12%) of children had reduced frequency of food intake (twice or less).” Regarding non-food items, it highlighted that specific to non-food items, only 15% of the respondents had reported being able to meet all their household needs. It further said that 44% had been able to meet “most of it”, while 39% could only meet “some of it”, and 2% indicated meeting “none at all”. Regarding health needs, it was noted that about one-third (34%) had noted being able to fully meet all their needs, while 38% could meet most of their needs, 27% some, and 1.1% none at all. When it comes to adult wellbeing, the report stated, that just over one quarter (26%) of respondents had reported that someone in their household was experiencing distress, with signs of reduced mental health and psychosocial wellbeing due to the economic crisis.  In addition, stating that 226 households have less than three children, and 2,349 have three or more children, the report said that a significantly higher proportion of households with three or more children (32%) indicated someone in their household was showing signs of distress as compared to households with less than three children. Regarding access to healthcare services, it was stated that among the one-third (32%) of households who had reported needing medical assistance in the three months prior to the survey, one in 10 (10%) were not able to receive that assistance. Some respondents had mentioned difficulties in accessing healthcare. “Only 3.2% of the total households shared reasons for being unable to access medical assistance and healthcare where needed. More than half (54%) of them noted this was due to cost–inability to afford the expensive medical costs. One-quarter (25%) of the respondents were from Nuwara Eliya. More than two in five (43.2%) said that it was due to lack of transportation to health facilities and transport costs. About one in three (31.1%) was due to lack or unavailability of health services/facilities nearby. This was similarly reported across all districts though no households in Anuradhapura, Colombo, or Ratnapura reported this issue.” The survey had also looked into impacts of the economic crisis on children. In this regard, the report said that one in 10 households (60%) had reported that key items are available, but their prices have increased, becoming expensive. For instance, 61% had reported that prices of the educational materials have increased, 61% have also reported increases in food prices, and 56% had reported increases in medicine prices, among others.  What is more, only a few households had reported the availability of key items in the local market – educational materials 15%, food 23%, medicine 11%, non-food items 14%, and sanitary items 14%. However, while unavailable in the local market, most goods were reported to be available in town. Facing the economic crisis According to survey findings, to cover household expenditures/basic needs, 12% of households are adopting “crisis-level” coping strategies, 3% are adopting “emergency-level” coping strategies, 64% are using “stress-level” coping strategies, and only 17% had not resorted to any coping strategy. “A majority (83%) of households have resorted to using at least one coping strategy. About two in five households reported spending their savings (39%) or borrowing money (38%). About one in five households (21.5%) have purchased food on credits or borrowed from friends. 17% reported selling household assets or goods (e.g. television, radio, jewellery, etc.) to meet their needs. 6.1% have reported reduced expenditure on healthcare services including medicines.” With regard to borrowing money to cover household expenses, the report said: “Over half of the households (56.2%) have borrowed money to cover household expenses in the past six months. Out of all the households, over one-third (36%) borrowed or took loans from banks/microfinance institutions. A significantly higher proportion of households in Badulla (57%) took loans from banks/microfinance institutions as compared to all other districts.” Impacts on children The study had paid special attention to the impacts of the economic crisis and related developments on children. About half of the respondents had identified boys (53%) and girls (51%) generally as the groups most vulnerable to child protection risks during the current economic crisis. Around one-third had highlighted children without caregivers (34%) to be most at risk, while nearly one-third had identified children with disabilities (29%), and around a quarter had mentioned adolescent boys (27%) and adolescent girls (29%), young girls (27%) and young boys (25%) aged 6-12, and infants/children under five years (25% boys, 27% girls). With regard to the impact on childcare, over two out of five (42%) households had changed their existing childcare practices due to the crisis. In one out of four (25%) households, children spend less time with parents and their primary caregivers.  The report said: “Parents and caregivers were asked about whether they noticed any changes in their children’s behaviour since the economic crisis began. In difficult and unsettling situations, children may externalise their feelings by showing signs of distress, including higher levels of unusual crying and screaming, more aggressive behaviour or violence, bedwetting as well as changes in emotional regulation. Just under one-third of the parents/caregivers (31%) reported observing changes in their children’s behaviour during the economic crisis. Changes in children’s behaviour are significantly higher in Budulla as compared to all other districts aside from Nuwara Eliya. “Just over one in 10 parents/caregivers reported changes in appetite (12.7%) and just under one in 10 reported changes in more aggressive behaviours (9.7%) and difficulty focusing on tasks at home and in school (9.6%). Significantly more households in Badulla (20.9%), Monaragala (19.9%), and Anuradhapura (16.3%) observed aggressive behaviour in children than in other districts. A total of 6.7% households reported changes in emotional regulation in their children, 6.5% reported sleeping changes, 5.2% reported unusual crying or screaming, and 5.5% reported seeing other signs of distress. More than half (55%) of the households reported some impact to their children’s education due to the current economic crisis. A significant impact was reported in Badulla (67%), Colombo, Mullaitivu, and Trincomalee (60%), Anuradhapura (56%), and Ratnapura (51%), as compared to the remaining two districts, Monaragala (41%) and Kilinochchi (40%).” In addition, one-third (33.9%) of the households stated that they were not able to spend money on children’s education needs – i.e. books, learning materials, uniforms, school bags and shoes – while one in three (29.8%) households had reported that one or more children are unable to go to extra classes/tuition. Owing to this situation, respondents feared children dropping out of schools, according to the report. “A total of 16.8% of respondents were concerned for the potential risk/impact on children’s education in the future, being unable to attain higher education. 1.4% of households reported at least one child stopped attending school, 2% of households reported children are engaged in paid work, and 1.6% of households reported that children are engaged in unpaid/household work. A higher proportion of households in Mullaitivu reported that at least one of their children stopped attending school (4.3%), were unable to attend school due to the need to engage in paid (5.1%) or unpaid (4.7, 12) work. A higher proportion of households in Trincomalee also reported dropouts due to paid (5.3%) or unpaid (3.8%) work. Almost all (99%) households indicated having access to educational materials either at the local market or in town. However, three out of five of these households (61%) indicated that educational materials are available but are becoming expensive.” While understanding the impacts of the economic crisis is an integral part of the process of resolving it, it should not be limited to the financial aspects of the crisis. As this survey explained, economic challenges often lead to deterioration in the quality of life, which cannot always be identified or measured through financial assessments. Identifying the gravity of the economic crisis involves understanding how it affects people’s health, education, social life and nutrition, and not just the household economy. 


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