‘Voices of Children’, a report commissioned by UNICEF Uganda, researched what Ugandan children living in a situation of poverty had to say about their lives in general, and more specifically about their experiences of poverty. It seeks to identify vulnerabilities and risks facing children, and what mechanisms children can draw on in order to improve their situation.

As part of a situation analysis of poor children in Uganda, the study provides an in-depth understanding as to why children’s basic needs across seven dimensions – education, health, food, water, sanitation, shelter and information - known as the Bristol Indicators -   are, or are not being met, according to children themselves. These dimensions are threshold measures of severe deprivations that are likely to have serious adverse consequences for children’s health, well-being and development.

Qualitative and participatory research instruments were used to capture what children had to say in relation to each of these dimensions, in order to understand if, why and how they faced deprivations. The study hopes to be able to inform better policy and programme design and community initiatives that can help tackle the real concerns facing children.