With its strong presence in 190 countries, UNICEF is the world’s leading advocate for children.
The heart of UNICEF’s work is in the field. Each country office carries out UNICEF’s mission through a unique program of cooperation developed with the host government. This five-year programme focuses on practical ways to realize the rights of children and women. Their needs are analyzed in a situation report produced at the beginning of the program cycle. Regional offices guide this work and provide technical assistance to country offices as needed. UNICEF’s work is fully part of other United Nations activities in a country.
Overall management and administration of the organization takes place at headquarters, where global policy on children is shaped. Specialized offices include the Supply Division, based in Copenhagen, which provides such essential items as the majority of life-saving vaccine doses for children in developing countries.
UNICEF also operates the Innocenti Research Centre in Florence and Offices for Japan and Brussels, which assist with fund-raising and liaison with policy makers.
Many people in industrialized countries first hear about UNICEF’s work through the activities of 36 National Committees for UNICEF. These non-governmental organizations promote children’s rights, raise funds, sell UNICEF greeting cards and products, create keycorporate and civil society partnerships, and provide other invaluable support. The committees raise a third of UNICEF’s resources.
Well known National Commitee campaigns include Check Out for Children, where guests add a donation to UNICEF to their room bill when checking out; Change For Good, which enables passengers on international airlines to donate their leftover foreign coins and notes; and ‘Trick or Treat for UNICEF,’ in which milions of children in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Ireland raise funds for UNICEF.
UNICEF is supported entirely by voluntary funds.
Governmentscontribute two thirds of our resources; private groups and some 6 million individual donors contribute the rest through our National Committees.
Guiding and monitoring all of UNICEF’s work is a 36-memberExecutive Board made up of government representatives. They establish policies, approve programmes and decide on administrative and financial plans and budgets. Members are elected by the United Nations Economic and Social Council, usually for three-year terms.
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