UNICEF

Founded in 1946 as the United Nations International Emergency Fund, UNICEF initially provided temporary food assistance for millions of children in European countries devastated by World War II. UNICEF’s original executive director Maurice Pate insisted that the organization distribute aid to children equally, regardless of their country’s stance during the war, famously declaring, “there are no enemy children.” At the height of its post-war operations in Europe, UNICEF provided a daily supplemental meal to 6 million children through 50,000 centers in 12 countries. The agency also distributed clothing and supported efforts to vaccinate 8 million children against tuberculosis.

In 1950, the UN General Assembly extended UNICEF’s mandate to alleviate suffering and address the long-term needs of children in global majority countries. In 1953, UNICEF became a permanent U.N. agency, dropping the words "international" and "emergency" from its name but retaining the original acronym.

The U.N. adopted the Declaration of the Rights of the Child in 1959, proclaiming children’s fundamental rights to adequate nutrition, housing, health care, protection and education. In 1989, it adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which soon became the most widely ratified human rights treaty in history. This holistic, rights-based definition of child wellbeing has been instrumental in expanding UNICEF priorities to include early childhood development and education programs, as well as advocacy and intervention to end child labor, child marriage and other forms of exploitation.

Today, UNICEF continues to respond to the needs of children in humanitarian emergencies brought on by earthquake, flood, conflict and other crises around the world. The agency also leads global efforts to vaccinate marginalized and underserved children against preventable diseases, including measles, rubella, tetanus and polio. More broadly, UNICEF leverages its financial resources, expertise and global partnerships to address the underlying causes of children’s mortality, poverty, vulnerability, gender inequality and exclusion. More than half a century after then-Executive Director Henry Labouisse accepted UNICEF’s Nobel Peace Prize, the agency’s ongoing pursuit of systemic change is still guided by his prophetic statement: “The welfare of today’s children is inseparably linked with the peace of tomorrow’s world.”

Contributors: Maha Tazi, Erin Brown