India Towards Progress

Striking features:
• Every second young child in India is malnourished
• Less than ¼ of rural population use toilets
• Only 4 out of 10 girls who enrol complete eight years of schooling

There are two prominent trends in India: impressive economic growth and wealth creation; and stagnation in key social indicators, particularly among disadvantaged populations (i.e. geographically, by caste, gender). The rapid growth of the economy since the early 1990s, and the Government of India’s (GOI) increased commitment to accelerating social development, present a unique opportunity.

Since the inception of the ambitious 10th Five Year Plan in 2003, current rates of progress on many indicators are not sufficient to meet many of the child-related National Development Targets by 2007, nor the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015.

Greater effort and focus must be directed to enrolling all children in the development process through improved management and provision of quality basic social services, promoting child-related behaviour change within households, and mobilizing the community to become more involved in the management of services for children.

Background

India is increasingly recognized as a global power in key economic sectors. There have also been positive trends on certain social indicators, particularly those that respond to vertical, campaign-like approaches: the near eradication of polio; a significant increase in literacy rates; and the enrolment of both boys and girls in primary school. However, progress has been slow in areas requiring systemic changes, such as in the provision of good quality services (i.e. primary health care and community-based nutrition services). There has also been limited change in the practice of key behaviours related to child well-being, such as hand washing and exclusive breastfeeding. The HIV/AIDS epidemic continues to spread and poses a significant threat. Issues related to child protection, including...