About War Child
Children are dying in conflicts that have been forgotten by the World. Conflicts in countries like the Democratic Republic of Congo, where nearly four million people - mainly women and children - have died since 1998 as a result war. By joining War Child as a member you will be helping to give voice to people caught up in these forgotten conflicts and bring them to the attention of the world to sanction action.
During war and conflict, it is the vulnerable children who suffer the most. These children, and the people they depend upon, usually try to cope without help because security is often a problem or because funding priorities are directed toward groups that are easier to work with. By joining War Child as a member you will be supporting innovative projects that help to protect the most vulnerable children, open up access for them to basic services such as education, and enable the people they depend upon to care for them.
Being a member of War Child means that you are giving your heart and mind to stand against the prosecution of war on children. We also ask that you give us just one pound a week, or an amount that you can comfortably afford, to support the world class work that War Child undertakes with children affected by conflict.
The membership platform that War Child is building will enable us to take a major issue facing children affected by conflict every year and place it in front of opinion formers for attention and action. We will add volume to the voice of the child by working with our family of offices in Australia, France and the USA to establish a World Day for Children Affected by Conflict in order to raise the profile of the consequences of war on children. We will continue to put forward a call to action from the children themselves in ever more creative and assertive ways. The membership platform will also help to resource innovative projects that are shaped and moulded by the children who we exist to serve - wherever possible strengthening their own ability and the ability of those they depend upon to address the acute challenges they face.
The War Child promise
- We promise to support projects that wherever possible work with the most vulnerable children in innovative ways that enable them to shape the development of those projects
- We promise to keep you updated on the campaigning work that we are involved in and promise to invite you to lend your name to this
- We promise to update you regularly with the progress that we make on the projects that your money helps to support
- We promise to spend your money in an efficient way, keeping administrative and other running costs to a minimum
- We promise to tell you what we have spent your money on
- We promise not to come back to you and pester you for more money
Our history
War Child was founded in 1993 in response to the conflict raging in the former Yugoslavia. Initially raising money through entertainment events and public appeals, War Child set out to bring immediate material aid to children of all ages and ethnic backgrounds.
As War Child grew it was able to undertake larger projects, the first being a mobile bakery which fed thousands of people a day throughout the conflict in Bosnia. Funding a network of NGOs and implementing more than twenty projects throughout the region, War Child's work included food provision, medical care, reconstruction and educational and social welfare programmes. The opening of the Pavarotti Music Centre in Mostar marked the culmination of War Child's work in Bosnia, and the centre stands as a symbol of hope and regeneration in the country.
War Child has since spread its work to war zones around the world. As well as continuing its work in the Balkans, War Child is currently operational in Iraq, Afghanistan and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Working without prejudice of any kind, War Child champions the right of all children to a happy, healthy and secure childhood. It works together with children to help build a better world for present and future generations.