The report 2013 Social Outlook presented this month by the ECLAC informed that 40.5% of children and teenagers of Latin America are poor, what the entity considers as a “high proportion” in that population because they face adversities that directly damage the rest of their lives and will pass to the following generations.

This implies that child poverty in the region affects to 70.5 million people under 18 years old. 16.3% of that total is in a situation of extreme poverty. 1 out of 6 under 18 years old is extremely poor (28.3 million of children and teenagers)

The realities are different in the different groups of countries. Among the countries with the highest child poverty (Bolivia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Peru) in average 72% of children are poor. Among the countries with the lowest child poverty (Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador and Uruguay) 19.5% of children are poor.