The very heart of the Sustainable Development Goals is to end poverty in all forms everywhere by 2030. To do this we must break the intergenerational cycle of poverty by putting children first. Not only because it's legally and morally the right thing to do, but also because it makes economic and social sense.

Children are more likely to be poor. Whether using the extreme poverty line or the Multidimensional Poverty Index, children are more likely to live in poverty than other groups. According to China's sixth national population census in 2010, the number of children living in poverty-stricken areas is estimated to be 70 million, accounting for about 25 percent of the child population nationwide. The mortality of children living in the poorest counties at each age is higher than the national average by 50 percent or more. About 5 percent of children in poverty-stricken areas do not complete compulsory education. Only 64 percent of children live with both parents.

Poverty goes beyond economic indicators. While inadequate household income is a significant driver of child poverty, poverty is about the set of deprivations that boys and girls experience across different aspects of their lives. These deprivations occur for children living within and outside designated income poor households, in rural areas and in cities, and include, hunger, lack of loving care, exposure to violence or abuse, social discrimination and exclusion, and poor access to basic services like education, water and sanitation.