France is often regarded as a European economic powerhouse of wealth and political influence. However, of the 14.47 million children living in France, 22.8% were at risk of poverty and social exclusion as of 2021. This amounts to around 3.3 million children in total. These children consistently struggle to access education, health care, food, housing and care services. In fact, by 2022, nearly 5,700 children in mainland France lived in shantytowns. Additionally, about 30,000 were housed in hotels—environments deemed unfit for family living—and 1,600 had no accommodation solution at all.

European Council Child Guarantee

Poverty and exclusion threaten about 19 million children in the European Union. In light of this, the European Commission adopted a recommendation from the European Council and created the Child Guarantee Act. This act aims to prevent and fight social exclusion by ensuring that vulnerable children have effective access to a range of basic services, such as free education, free health care, healthy food and adequate housing. By adopting the Childhood Guarantee on June 12, 2021, France pledged to enforce the protection of children’s rights to health, education, security and comfort at the national level. Consequently, France also pledged to enhance existing monitoring systems and develop new ones to better protect these rights.

French Child Guarantee National Action Plan

The Child Guarantee National Action Plan proposed by France to the European Council is ambitious, with many of its measures aimed at tackling child poverty receiving widespread approval. The plan focuses on five main points, which are as follows:

1. The creation of a national observatory for ‘nonschooling’ now requires parents to obtain prior authorization to home-school their children. Authorities will accept only limited reasons for granting this permission.
2. To reduce child poverty, the plan improves access to employment and develops the country’s childcare support system, focusing on maternal assistance accessibility during a child’s first 1,000 days.
3. To reinforce access to education and schooling for vulnerable children, the plan includes enforcing stricter rules in foster care systems.
4. The plan prioritizes children’s mental health and improves their access to health care overall.
5. The plan expands the availability of care services to all children up to the age of 21.

Remaining Uncertainties

There are ongoing uncertainties about the funding and implementation conditions for policies designed to tackle child poverty in France. Key concerns include how the French Child Guarantee National Action Plan will be implemented, monitored and evaluated. This is due to an agreement by the Council of the European Union and the European Parliament that requires Member States to allocate 5% of their European Social Fund Plus resources to combat child poverty, but only if their national child poverty rates exceed the European average of 23.4%.

Countries like France do not have to invest a specific percentage of their budget in these efforts. Instead, they only need to allocate an ‘appropriate’ amount. This flexibility in the requirement is concerning, as it could result in inadequate support for vulnerable children in France who are at risk of or currently experiencing poverty, potentially diverting funds to other investments.

Looking Ahead

France faces significant challenges in addressing child poverty. The French Child Guarantee National Action Plan, aligned with the European Council’s Child Guarantee Act, aims to provide vulnerable children with access to essential services like education, health care and housing. However, uncertainties remain regarding the allocation of resources and the effectiveness of these measures, raising concerns about whether the plan will provide sufficient support to those most in need.

– Kristina Grant

Kristina is based in Scotland and focuses on Global Health and Politics for The Borgen Project.

Photo: Flickr