“We sometimes think that poverty is simply being hungry, naked and homeless. The poverty of being unwanted, unloved and neglected is the greatest poverty. (Mother Teresa) Poverty in South Africa affects the country in many ways; However, the country's most vulnerable margin is the hardest hit. Children are the most vulnerable aspect of any country, as they are still developing and do not have the resources to be independent; they can also only take what they are given without being able to change or produce anything. So failing to take care of children and depriving them of a healthy atmosphere that helps them develop properly not only permanently traumatizes them in the long term; but it also suggests an unpromising future for the country's development. 65.5% of children living in South Africa are members of poor households, compared to 45.2% of the adult population. (Lareya 6). This is why this article focuses on how poverty affects children, especially those living in an unstable developing country like South Africa, where they constitute the dominant population in rural areas. This is particularly important as South Africa is one of the countries hardest hit by the international financial crisis and is still struggling to recover. (Lareya 4) Understanding the poverty that South Africa faces and its effects on children will help find solutions or remedies to the damage that poverty causes to children. Finding solutions will reduce the 65.5% of children living in South Africa among the poor. Reducing child poverty will allow the economy to prosper. This article will focus on how the poor household atmosphere...... middle of article ......tion of poor households in South Africa, facilitating in the future the understanding of the effect it has on children. Poverty in South Africa is a fantasy for almost half of South African households. “In 2006, more than two in five (42.2%) households in South Africa lived below the upper poverty line.” (Lehohla 40) Many households in South Africa suffer from lack of income compared to food prices, which explains the significant suffering of family members. The suffering of individuals causes a country's resources to dwindle, which spells an unpromising future for a country for decades. Likewise, children are those who are most lastingly influenced by the lack of household resources, because the first years of their development are the most important years and those which determine the future..