Africa is a continent that is growing fast, but parts of it are some of the most difficult places on earth to be a child. More than half of the world’s extreme poor live in sub-Saharan Africa, and children born here have the worst chances of survival anywhere in the world.
Millions of children in Africa are facing an extreme food crisis, and so many can’t access the education and healthcare they need.
On the other hand, there are an incredible number of wealthy individuals and organisations in Africa, with the potential to change the situation for good. Increasing challenges like a fast-growing population, climate change, political instability and conflict require us to come up with creative ways to make sure every last child in Africa grows up healthy, educated and safe from harm.
By working together, we can achieve our vision of a world in which every child can not only survive, but thrive.
Save the Children: 100 years of lifesaving support
Save the Children was founded by two sisters in 1919. They saw the devastation the First World War had caused for children caught up in the chaos and wanted to do whatever they could to help them.
We opened our first African programme, a child welfare centre in Addis Ababa, back in the early 1930s. Over the years we’ve worked with many of the most vulnerable communities across Africa – from responding to earthquakes and drought, to providing lifesaving healthcare, food and shelter to children in the poorest areas.
Today, Save the Children is the world’s leading independent organisation for children. Through innovative development programmes, vital emergency response work, bold campaigns and high-impact partnerships, we do whatever it takes to make sure children survive, get protection when they’re in danger, and have the chance to learn.
We bring together local and global experts to inform our high-quality programme work and achieve real, lasting change for children. 40.8 million children were directly reached by the Save the Children global movement in 2018.
We believe in the power of children. Together with our supporters, we stand side by side with children to help them reach their potential and build a better future. As we mark 100 years of Save the Children in 2019, we’re committed to focusing on three of the biggest areas for development in Africa:
- Health and nutrition: tackling pneumonia and malnutrition, which together kill millions of children each year
- Protecting children: working in the most dangerous conflict zones to keep children safe
- Education: Ensuring all children get the best start in life
