UNICEF: Czech Republic Outranks U.S. In Child Well Being

Many of us list quality of family life as a reason for relocating to the Czech Republic. A new report issued by the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) may confirm this response.

The table reads well for those countries that frequently appear at the top of recent comparisons of human and child development – the Nordic countries, Germany, and Switzerland – and less so for lower-income countries in the group, such as Romania, Bulgaria, and Chile.

The Czech Republic finished in the middle of the rankings (#20), which analyze a country’s performance in education, health, and poverty among other areas.

The Czech Republic fared best in ensuring justice and strong institutions (#6) as well as in the area of work and economic growth (#13).

Only 14.7 percent of children in the Czech Republic live in relative poverty, which is the eighth best score of all the countries surveyed; the country scored #16 in the area of zero hunger—only 8.9 percent of Czech children live in a household that has trouble securing sufficient quantities of food.

According to UNICEF, the infant mortality rate in the Czech Republic is the fifth lowest among the countries included.

In quality of education the Czech Republic ranked in #22; for its approach to production and consumption, #24. The Czech Republic was #25 in health and quality of life (14.7 children in the Czech Republic suffer from obesity); Portugal was the first, the last Chile.

For sustainability of its cities and towns, the Czech Republic was #26.

Its worst ratings reflect its failure to reduce inequality (#31).

For comparison, the U.S. ranked in the lower strata across most categories.