News & Views

Right now, as policies and procedures surrounding children separated from their families continue to evolve, a major concern has yet to be resolved: the plight of those thousands who remain removed from their parents. ChildFund International is deeply concerned about their wellbeing. We have been working with children and families on both sides of the border for decades, and will apply that unique expertise and insight to assist these children until they can be reunited.

“These kids are doubly traumatized, first in the dangerous journey from their home countries and then in being taken from the people who love them,” said Anne Lynam Goddard, ChildFund’s president and CEO. “They need much more than basic sustenance. They need emotional support and care. Children who are not in the care of their parents are also even more vulnerable to exploitation and neglect.”

As CEO and Director of ChildFund India, Neelam Makhijani is working to give excluded and vulnerable children the capacity to improve their lives and become adults who bring positive change in their communities.

As a journalist in New York, Neelam Makhijani worked for a leading Asian weekly, where she wrote and commented on South Asian political issues. Her job connected her to many humanitarian initiatives and she decided to take her job on-ground and “be the change she wished to see”.

Today, thousands of people worldwide are beside themselves with excitement at the kickoff of the world’s foremost soccer tournament. Here at ChildFund International we have something else to celebrate: We have teamed up with Coca-Cola, Walmart International and One World Play Project to #PassTheHappiness. Through this worldwide campaign, we will receive a share of 100,000 unpoppable soccer balls for teenagers in our programs.

As the voice behind the Coca-Cola Anthem for the 2018 World Cup, artist Jason Derulo joined Coca-Cola as spokesperson of the #PassTheHappiness campaign to help bring the power of play to underprivileged youth globally.

“This is a great opportunity to give back, not only to my home country of Haiti, but to teenagers around the world,” Jason Derulo says, juggling a One World FutbolTM at his home outside Los Angeles. “This ball is amazing.”

Recent reports have shown that Papua New Guinea (PNG) is one of the most dangerous countries for mothers and pregnant women. According to the aid agency ChildFund Australia, women in PNG are 35 times more likely to die during pregnancy than women in Australia.

One of the biggest issues that leads to death or severe complications for both the mother and child is a lack of supervised births at adequate birthing facilities. In 2016, only 40 percent of women in PNG gave birth at a health facility with a specialized birth attendant.

“No woman should die giving birth. Yet in a country just 160 kilometers north of Australia, women are losing their lives every day during childbirth due to unsafe conditions and causes that are completely preventable,”

Our progress for positive change in Paraguay is setting the stage for collaboration with governments and civil-society organizations around the world

If you’ve ever been to Paraguay, you might understand the feeling of community you experience from people in all corners of the country. I experienced this genuine welcome on my recent trip there a few days ago, but my eyes were also opened to one side of the country I couldn’t see.

I couldn’t see what happens behind closed doors. Jorge Méndez Rheineck, our country director in Paraguay, spoke frankly about the situation: “Violence against children in the home is a problem for too many. Worse, children suffer sexual abuse from adults they trust — relatives, family, friends and neighbours,” he said.

Read the final statement of the International Seminar "Participation of children and adolescents in the eradication of violence against children," held in Asunción, Paraguay on 30 May 2018. 

One in four schoolchildren were found to be lacking in free time or rest time, and only 1 out of 100 were able to enjoy a quality of life that was in tune with recommended standards, according to a survey conducted by ChildFund Korea last year in November and December.

Australia’s near-neighbour Papua New Guinea is one of the most dangerous places in the world to be a mother and there are signs the country’s health crisis is getting worse, a report has found.

Women in PNG are 35 times more likely to die during pregnancy than women in Australia (1 in 120 in PNG compared to 1 in 8700 in Australia), according to an evaluation of maternal health by the aid agency ChildFund Australia.