Symptoms versus causes: observations and recommendations on UNICEF's urban child programme draws attention to a limitation of many development programmes, the tendency to focus action on readily observed problem symptoms to the neglect of more difficult and intractable causes. The paper praises the flexibility of UNICEF's programming system and its ability to mobilize resources but, at the same time, is critical of UNICEF's reluctance to confront important and politically sensitive causes of the problems faced by the world's children. The analysis and recommendations have relevance well beyond UNICEF.
