Quality of life, Campania fails: Naples at the bottom of the list for young people and children

It is a merciless photograph that emerges from the survey on the quality of life by age group published by Il Sole 24 Ore . An analysis that, with data in hand, lays bare the structural weaknesses of Campania and in particular of Naples, which falls to the rear in two of the three key rankings: the one dedicated to children (0-14 years) and the one reserved for young people (18-35 years). The Neapolitan capital is placed 104th and 104th out of 107 provinces, respectively, confirming itself as one of the least suitable places to grow up or build a future.

In the “children” section, Naples boasts a fertility rate above the national average, but every other indicator speaks of a public system that is absent or in difficulty: very little equipped green space, very little availability of school canteens, lack of gyms, almost non-existent childcare services, low levels of literacy and numerical skills. A picture that is also reflected in the other provinces of Campania, with Caserta and Salerno not far from the bottom of the ranking.

Among young people, the city pays a high price for endemic unemployment, a widespread perception of insecurity and a cultural offering that is almost zero. Naples is last in Italy for youth unemployment and 105th for perception of insecurity, even if it surprisingly comes in second place for youth entrepreneurship, a sign of a desire for redemption that is struggling to find fertile ground.

Things are no better for the elderly, where the worst province is Caserta (99th), followed by Naples (91st): life expectancy below average, chronic shortage of beds in RSA and social assistance reduced to a minimum. Campania as a whole pays a very high price for the failure to plan effective and long-lasting public policies, while the North of the country, especially the North-East, dominates the top positions in the rankings unchallenged.

“The quality of life by age group represents a compass for measuring the country's fragilities in a crucial moment of demographic crisis”, explains the editorial staff of Sun 24 Hours. And if this compass points to the South, it does so to indicate a route to be reversed: that of territories where growing up, growing old or simply living is still a privilege for a few.