Child poverty in Argentina fell by 14 percentage points in the second half of 2024, lifting an estimated 1.7 million children out of income-based poverty, according to a new UNICEF report.
The study estimates that 52.7% of children in Argentina lived in households with incomes too low to cover basic food needs during the last six months of 2024 — equivalent to 6.4 million children living in income-based poverty.
The decline in income-based poverty came after a sharp rise in the first half of 2024, when child poverty rose above 67% and affected more than 8 million children.
Based on official data from Argentina’s National Institute of Statistics and Censuses (INDEC), UNICEF projects that child poverty will continue to fall in the first half of 2025, reaching 47.8%, while extreme poverty is expected to drop to 9.3%.
The improvement is largely attributed to a 21% increase in real household income between the first and second halves of 2024.
At the same time, Argentina’s economy showed signs of recovery in early 2025.
Official data show the economy grew 5.9% year-over-year in the first half of 2025. Sectors such as construction (+9.9%), retail (+9.3%) and financial services (+29.3%) led the rebound, supported by greater currency stability and a slowdown in inflation, which began easing in April.
“Along with slowing inflation, social protection policies focused on children were key to reducing poverty — especially extreme poverty,” said Sebastián Waisgrais, UNICEF Argentina’s monitoring specialist.
Still, UNICEF warns that child poverty remains at “very high” levels and that conditions are still critical for millions of children and teenagers. The organization reiterated its call for sustained public policies to ensure access to essential rights including health care, education and adequate nutrition.
Additional challenges stem from persistent inequality.
For example, the poverty rate among children in households where the head did not complete primary school reached 80.9% in the second half of 2024, compared with 10.6% in homes where the head completed secondary education. Children in households led by informal workers faced a poverty rate of 68.4%, while poverty affected 72.3% of minors in informal settlements and 60% of those in single-mother households.
In response to the report, sources from Argentina’s Economy Ministry quoted by La Nación said the results are a “direct consequence of macroeconomic stabilization and the recovery of real wages.”
According to the same sources, “responsible fiscal policy, a halt to monetary expansion and market deregulation have laid the groundwork for translating economic growth into social improvements.”
