Commissioner for Children Helen D’Amato noted that children from some low income families tend to have low rates of school attendance and therefore, linking the actual payment of supplements to high school attendance is logical.
She was commenting after it was announced that some 13,000 families are to benefit from a child supplement which will be issued on Saturday 5 September. This will be distributed to families with an income lower than €13,830.
Families will be given €400 for each child for the first three children and €200 for every other child. In total, this will cost the government €7,598,783.
However, the commissioner noted that a number of issues are not addressed by the scheme. First, the rationale of the scheme seems to be based on the assumption that low income families do not regularly send their children to school out of a capricious motive. “While this may be true of some of these families, it is certainly not true of all such families, some of which may be plagued by such issues as mental illness which may affect one or both parents. It is dubious whether an income supplement can on its own prod people with such issues to send their children to school more regularly,” the Commissioner said.
Secondly, Mrs Damato noted that even if the scheme succeeds in increasing school attendance of children from low income families, it will not on its own enhance the appreciation by children and their families of the intrinsic and practical value of education.
She also said the scheme does not ensure that the supplement is used for the well-being of children.
“The scheme should be designed to ensure that the supplement that is received by low income families is spent or saved in the best interest of children- that is, in ways that are conducive to their educational and health needs” the commissioner said.
Family income
According to the National Statistics Office, in 2013, the average household gross income and the mean disposable income stood at €28,379 and €23,498 respectively. In Malta, the total percentage of people at risk of poverty stood at 24%. 32% were children less than 17 years of age, 22% adults between 18 and 64 years and 20.8% people aged over 65 years old.
The at-risk-of-poverty rate decreased as household work intensity went up. This rate ranged from 65.2% among persons living in households with very low work intensity, to 1 % for those in households with very high work intensity.
Positive feedback for measure
Leonid McKay, Executive Director of Caritas Malta, said that the organisation welcomes any measure that directly affects the most vulnerable families, including those with a low income, however stressed that such measure should be carefully evaluated.
“Poverty is a reality. There are families out there who do not have the minimum budget for a decent standard of living. Poverty is a complex reality, and it is wrong of those who claim that it is self-inflicted. It is rather the result of a number of factors, such as lack of opportunities or illness,” Mr McKay said, in comments to The Malta Independent. “Unfortunately, there is still more talk of abuse of social benefits, rather than of this complex reality.”
Fr John Avellino regularly meets with parents who are struggling to make ends meet. “It is almost impossible to support a family of two children with one wage which ranges between €800 and €1, 000,” he said. “A measure like the child supplement does help, but we need to think on a long-term scale. Parents need to invest in their children’s education – they need to help with their homework, monitor their studying. I am always insisting on this with the families I meet. It is ultimately education that will ensure that children of these families have a better income than their parents. Authorities need to make it easier for children and young people to study as well assupport both mothers and fathers entering the workforce.”