Change for Good - changing children's lives

To support World Malaria Day 2009, Change for Good donated over £220,000 to help purchase and distribute 36,000 long lasting insecticidal mosquito nets for children under five and pregnant women in Alimosho, Lagos State, Nigeria.

In Nigeria, Government reports estimate that malaria accounts for 20 - 30% of all deaths in children under one year old. The use of insecticide-treated nets by children under five and pregnant women is only 6.8%.

The nets purchased will reach more than 35% of the target population of Alimosho, Lagos State, preventing the spread of malaria amongst the most vulnerable in the community.

Image: UNICEF/NIGA00281/Giacomo Pirozzi

Demand for cheap, low-skilled labour in China's cities has grown exponentially due to the rapid economic growth and accelerated industrialisation the country has experienced over the past twenty years. It is estimated that currently there are 150 million migrant workers in China's cities which creates a huge challenge to provide adequate healthcare, education and protection to them and their families.

Change for Good has donated over £230,000 towards UNICEF's work improving health and education services for over 135,000 migrant children in Beijing. The donations will help children under 6 access immunisation services, providing vaccinations to help give the children the best possible start in life. The project will also provide library kits to 15 schools to encourage children to read and improve their skills.

Image: UNICEF/CHINA2009

In 2008, Change For Good donated £200,000 to support UNICEF's expansion of foster care in Bulgaria to provide children in institutions with a better quality of life.

There are currently over 8,500 children in institutions in Bulgaria, many living in poor conditions and receiving inappropriate care.

The funds are currently being used to recruit foster parents for 200 children in Bulgaria's capital Sofia and the neighbouring city of Pernik.

The project also provides specialised training for potential foster parents and has enabled UNICEF to establish expert foster care teams to assist those families who are caring for a child who used to live in an institution.

Image: UNICEFBulgaria/2008/Penov

In May 2008 Change for Good was able to respond quickly to the devastation of Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar by donating £300,000 to help provide life-saving supplies, such as water purification tablets, drugs, essential medicines, latrine pans and tarpaulins to the millions left homeless.

The support also helped UNICEF establish child-friendly spaces in camps sheltering those made homeless, ensuring the children could carry on their education and lead as normal a life as possible under the difficult circumstances.

Image: UNICEF/HQ08-0315/Adam Dean

Change for Good donated over £300,000 to a vital Paediatric AIDS project in Tanzania in 2007. The aim of the project is to integrate care, treatment and support to children so that they can benefit from a comprehensive service. The funding provided health staff with training and bikes to ensure they could get to the remote areas. Parents and children were given counselling during the process of HIV diagnosis.

Image: UNICEF/HQ08-0315/Adam Dean  

Change for Good donated £50,000 to Kenya's Emergency Appeal following discontent over election results in Kenya. This allowed UNICEF to reach many children who had no access to food and water and who were at high risk of abuse and exploitation.

Image: UNICEF/Kenya/2008

With the help of Change for Good, UNICEF works towards a better quality of life for Cairo's street children by tackling the risks that they face and providing a safe place for them to be children once more.

Change for Good has donated £200,000 to a street children's programme that directly benefits 5,000 vulnerable children in greater Cairo.

The programme has drop-in centres and a mobile van as well as 100 counsellors and social workers. These resources provide children and young people with education, information and medical services to help them to enjoy a better quality of life.

Image: UNICEF/HQ96-1048/Nicole Toutounji

Change for Good has donated £300,000 towards a three-year programme focussed on giving better care to children affected by HIV/AIDS in Ukraine.

UNICEF aims to transfer at least 100 HIV/AIDS affected children each year of the programme from institutions to loving families who can offer them a brighter childhood and future.

Image: UNICEF/UKRA01279/Giacomo Pirozzi

In December 2006, Change for Good acted quickly to show support after devastating floods in Kenya. The floods displaced around 150,000 people, damaging water supplies and sanitation facilities.

Change for Good pledged £75,000 towards UNICEF's emergency work in the Isiolo district of Kenya. This money helped replace equipment and was also used to reconstruct water and sanitation systems.

Image: UNICEF/HQ06-2273/Brendan Bannon

In Dhaka, Bangladesh, there is a large population of child labourers who have no access to education.

UNICEF, in partnership with the Bangladeshi government, has developed a programme to help educate 200,000 children.

Change for Good has pledged £500,000 over five years towards this programme with the aim of providing basic education for 5,000 working children in Dhaka.

Image: BA/2005/Sue Hurley

Change for Good has donated over £100,000 to UNICEF's creative play projects for children living in Russian orphanages. Projects such as "Maria's Children" in Moscow use therapy and play to help children become better integrated into their communities and to teach them better communication skills.

Image: UNICEF UK/2005/Kate Holme