Still no progress for children living in material hardship - Children's Commissioner demanding urgent action

New statistics show we are still not making progress on reducing child poverty in New Zealand, and that’s unacceptable, says Children’s Commissioner Dr Claire Achmad.

The latest official child poverty statistics, published today by Stats NZ, show material hardship for children trending upwards since 2022, a measure that captures the stressful reality when families can’t afford the basics of life for their children, such as fresh food, adequate clothing, two pairs of shoes, and keeping up with power bills.

The new data shows Māori, Pacific and disabled children are, on average, impacted much more than others. 25.1% of mokopuna Māori and 27% of all disabled children live in material hardship. Pacific children experience this at double the rate of all children generally, with nearly one third living in material hardship (31%).

This compares with an average rate of 14.3% of New Zealand children living in material hardship.

“Behind these numbers are children going without the basics of life. Children are going hungry and sick because of poverty, growing up without the security every child needs. We’re talking about 169,300 children living in material hardship – that’s enough to fill Eden Park more than three times,” says Children’s Commissioner Dr Claire Achmad.

Dr Achmad notes that this number is up from 158,800 children living in material hardship on the previous year’s official statistics.

“New Zealand is a small, caring and relatively wealthy nation. Put simply, no child should be growing up in poverty – all should have a strong start in life. The statistics show we are going in the wrong direction here, and that’s unacceptable.

“The continued lack of progress on reducing poverty tells me our systems are still not serving children as they should. Standing still is nowhere near good enough when children’s basic health and lifelong wellbeing is at stake.”

“The Government has made reducing child material hardship one of its three Child and Youth Strategy priorities. That’s good, but to deliver on it, I’m demanding bold, practical action to make sure families have decent incomes, healthy food, and affordable and healthy housing.

“Reducing child material hardship should be a priority in Budget 2026 so that our nation’s children can grow up safe and well and reach their full potential. Rather than struggling to survive, they need to be supported to thrive.”

“This problem is solvable. We must make ending child poverty a project of national significance, with support across Parliament. Children need to know they come first, and urgently reducing material hardship needs to happen now for the children in greatest need.”

ends

Editor’s notes

Children’s Commissioner Dr Claire Achmad is the independent advocate for all children under the age of 18 in Aotearoa New Zealand and children and young people under 25 who have been in or who are in care and/or custody. As Children’s Commissioner, Dr Achmad leads the team at Mana Mokopuna – Children’s Commissioner, an independent Crown entity.

Media contact:

Melissa Wastney
029 909 2715