The current pratice is generally to hire a nurse to take care of the children. Although this is a less costly option, it holds many dangers for the children (malnutrition, maltreatment, etc). In rural areas, daycare services are virtually non existent. Thus, the child is entrusted to a member of the family or neighbour to enable the mother go about her business.  Standard of living (article 20a) In Niger, it is very difficult both for parents and the State to respect these instruments. We have already mentioned some of these difficulties in the domains of education, access to drinking water and healthcare. Housing is a particular problem in urban centres:  Insufficient houses compared to demand;  High cost of rents;  The lease and rental code is not respected;  The few low-cost houses built by the State are not accessible to middle income-earners. Despite the means provided by the State and the efforts made, especially the sinking of wells and boreholes equipped with manually operated pumps, the coverage rate of drinking water stands at 44% in rural areas and 76% in urban areas. Generally, the economic and financial situation of the State and the low incomes of households have led to the deepening of poverty in society, especially among the vulnerable segments of the population, namely children. In 2004, the United Nations Report ranked Niger last but one on the Human Development Index. In 2005, the country slid to the last position. The national budget consumption surveys carried out in 1989-1990 and 1992-1993 revealed that the people of Niger are poor; 34% are extremely poor and live with less than one dollar per day. The drastic measures imposed by international financial institutions necessarily led to adjustment measures that curtailed the actual enjoyment of these rights. d3. Achievements These concern concrete measures and programmes aimed at poverty eradication, job creation, social reintegration, early warning system, etc. The poverty eradication programme was adopted by Law No. 24 of 8 July 1997. It aimed at reviving the economy in the short-, medium- and long-term. Under the special programme of the President of the Republic, women‟s groups benefited from micro-credits to embark on income-generating or feed-producing activities. Also worthy of note is the project to set up a credit bank for women. 30