Even in times of economic well-being, nearly 600,000 or 17.3 per cent of Australia's children continue to live in poverty, says a updated report released by the Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS). As the new session of Parliament opens on Tuesday, the UNICEF and child rights activists called on the government to accord top priority to tacking the issue of child poverty.

As countries around the world are lifting children out of poverty, Australia is slipping.

"It is ironic that, while internationally the rate of child poverty is decreasing, a wealthy nation like Australia is slipping," said UNICEF spokesman Tim O'Connor in a statement.

"We really should be a world leader in ensuring that all our children get the best possible start in life," he said.

ACOSS CEO Dr Cassandra Goldie pointed out that the figure released by the Council shows a 15 per cent increase since 2001.

Critical of the government policy measures, Dr Goldie said in a statement, "The early signs of our new government seem to be taking us in the wrong direction."

Measures such as government cuts to the school bonus, unemployment allowance and super contributions being adopted by the government showed that it was not focused to meet the needs of the poor, she alleged.

"In contrast, many tax breaks for people on higher incomes seem set to be continued," Dr Goldie pointed out.

Both organisations have called on the government to work with private and community bodies to develop an anti-poverty plan to find solutions to the crisis.

The UNICEF and ACOSS will be bringing together child welfare experts to meet at a forum on child poverty reduction to be held in Sydney on Tuesday.