Mark Yannone - Issues - Foreign Aid - Foreign Aid Budget - United Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF)

Issues - Foreign Aid - Foreign Aid Budget - United Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF)

"Cut the fat, cut the fat."

Rudiger von Wechmar, West Germany, former President of General Assembly
Recommendation for UN, NY Times 13 Jun 85

Created by the United Nations General Assembly in 1946 to help children after World War II in Europe, UNICEF was first known as the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund. In 1953, UNICEF became a permanent part of the United Nations system, its task being to help children living in poverty in developing countries. Its name was shortened to the United Nations Children's Fund, but it retained the acronym "UNICEF," by which it is known to this day.

UNICEF helps children get the care and stimulation they need in the early years of life and encourages families to educate girls as well as boys. It strives to reduce childhood death and illness and to protect children in the midst of war and natural disaster. UNICEF supports young people, wherever they are, in making informed decisions about their own lives, and strives to build a world in which all children live in dignity and security.

Working with national governments, NGOs (non-governmental organizations), other United Nations agencies and private-sector partners, UNICEF protects children and their rights by providing services and supplies and by helping shape policy agendas and budgets in the best interests of children.

Four Executive Directors have guided and inspired UNICEF's work for children since the organization was founded 55 years ago:

Maurice Pate, January 1947 - January 1965

Henry R. Labouisse, June 1965 - December 1979

James P. Grant, January 1980 - January 1995

Carol Bellamy, May 1995 - present

UNICEF's governing body of 36 nations, representing all regions of the world, establishes policies, reviews programs and approves budgets for the organization. Headquartered in New York, UNICEF carries out its work through seven regional offices and 126 country offices covering more than 160 countries, territories and areas.

The 37 National Committees for UNICEF are private, not-for-profit organizations, primarily in industrialized countries, that support UNICEF programs. Extensive networks of volunteers help the Committees raise funds, sell the well-known UNICEF greeting cards and carry out other activities, such as the "Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF" program. These efforts help generate a deeper understanding of the rights and needs of children everywhere and provide ways for young people as well as adults to change the world for children.

Find out more about UNICEF by clicking HERE

Return to the Foreign Aid/Affairs/Defense budget by clicking HERE


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