EV E RY CHILD September 2011 Hong Kong Committee for UNICEF Newsletter ISSUE 30 In focus • Equity – reaching the most vulnerable • Create equity for Hong Kong children – Child Rights Advocacy Project 2011 UNICEF • HKCU 25 years of dedication to children Feature together with corporate partners Hand in hand with UNICEF • Unite for Children – HKCU 25th Anniversary Charity Concert • New HKCU Ambassador Wong Kam Po raises © UNICEF/NYHQ2004-0604/Giacomo Pirozzi awareness through cycling Unite for the environment! Swap to Every Child E-edition www.unicef.org.hk Message from the Chairman Message from In focus the Chairman The farthest away shall come nearest Shanghai is where I was born, Beijing where I spent my childhood, the US where I started to bloom, but it is the charming city of Hong Kong where I am settling in that attracts me the most, its beauty best manifest in its people’s generosity. After almost a year of serving children as the Chairman of Hong Kong Committee for UNICEF (HKCU), I am now more confident in your generosity than ever. Early this year, HKCU was first awarded the Annual Financial Performance Award 2010 for outstanding fundraising among all UNICEF medium sized © UNICEF/NYHQ2007-2876/Giacomo Pirozzi committees in the past 25 years. Is this not the most convincing proof? 01/ Message from the Chairman We strongly believe that this award represents our united effort and also the vision we 02/ In focus • Equity – reaching the most vulnerable share with you all, that not a single child should die of preventable causes, and that • Create equity for Hong Kong children – every childhood should be full of joy, absent from threat, discrimination, exploitation Child Rights Advocacy Project 2011 and so on. As a distinguished charity and a leading organisation working specially for • Leonie’s journal – rise like a phoenix from the ashes children, we believe firmly we can make a difference, bringing improvement of lives to 07/ Reports from the field the most hopeless. Reveals worldwide crises facing children and UNICEF’s care for each child It goes without saying that UNICEF’s major target recipients are the most vulnerable Equity • Severe drought and famine stalk the Horn of Africa women and children – those hardest to reach and the least cared for. At the last 09/ UNICEF feature annual meeting, ‘Equity’, a concept implying equality, was once again highlighted as Discover UNICEF afresh through different stories Reaching the most a cornerstone of our global strategy. This was reflected when Mr Wong Kam Po, the • HKCU 25 years of dedication to children, together with corporate partners recently-appointed HKCU Ambassador said, “We must never give up and adhere to all I bet you don’t know goals with determination.” No matter how hard to access, we will reach those in need 13/ Hand in hand with UNICEF and our labour will reap the harvest. Our work would not be possible without our ambassadors, Through ongoing endeavour, the past two decades have seen the global under-five mortality rate fall by a third. However the regions of sub- partners, volunteers and donors This issue of Every Child, our 25th anniversary issue, offers more than just four more vulnerable • Unite for Children – pages. ‘In focus’ will examine UNICEF’s global working strategy and its equity- Saharan Africa and South Asia continue to have the highest numbers of children dying before age five – representing 81 per cent of the global HKCU 25th Anniversary Charity Concert based approach and how we have applied it locally to help the most neglected and total. To tackle disparities, as of late 2010 UNICEF has been integrating an equity refocus into all operations, to better target the needs of the • New HKCU Ambassador Wong Kam Po marginalised children and women. most deprived and marginalised children. By accelerating our efforts towards equity, hopefully a new page is being opened in safeguarding raises awareness through cycling the vulnerable worldwide, through attaining maximum cost-effectiveness and meeting the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) 4 and 5, 15/ At a glance May this silver jubilee edition help you learn more about our work and mark the start of designed to ‘reduce child mortality’ and ‘improve maternal health’. Advocacy and education activities For the betterment of coming generations many more jubilees to come. Let’s join hands, continue to uphold the rights of world’s • Let’s talk! Sharing experience of breastfeeding women and children! Fundraising activities Yours sincerely, Every dollar brings hope to countless vulnerable children • Over HK$4.6 million raised for Libya and Japan 17/ Swap to E-edition / Subscription to UNICEF information 18/ Acknowledgements Judy Chen Back Chairman cover/ Donation form Hong Kong Committee for UNICEF The Hong Kong Committee for UNICEF The Council The Hong Kong Committee for UNICEF (HKCU) was founded in 1986 as an independent, Chairman: Ms Judy Chen local, non-governmental organisation to raise funds to support UNICEF’s work and Vice-Chairman: Ms Leonie Ki, SBS, JP; Mr Johnny Ng advocate for children’s rights. Treasurer: Mr Joseph Yu, MH Serving as the public face and dedicated voice of UNICEF, HKCU works tirelessly to raise funds Secretary: Mr Julian Chow through public donations, corporate partnerships and special events. HKCU also promotes and Council Members: Miss Au King Chi; Mr Davie Auyeung; Ms May Chiu; Ms Margaret Coates; Mr John Crawford, JP; © UNICEF/NYHQ2006-2217/Pirozz © UNICEF/NYHQ2006-2217/Pirozz advocates for children’s rights though various education and youth programmes in Hong Kong. Mr Bon Ho; Dr Maggie Koong; Mr Leon Lai, BBS, MH; Dr Maurice Leung; Mr Louis Loong; Mr Gilbert Mo; Mrs Corina Wong; Mr Kevin Yeung; Mr Dicky Yip, MBE, JP 2 An equity-focused approach In focus Across countries Equity-focused strategies are being developed to improve the The resultant research on the equity approach is promising: every additional Despite the dramatic drop in the overall under-five mortality rate, sub-Saharan Africa remains to be the provision and use of services for the most deprived and mar- $1 million spent on helping the most disadvantaged children in low-income, region most severely afflicted, with 129 of every 1,000 children under five dying in 2009. ginalised children by reducing barriers that result from factors high mortality countries could avert 60 per cent more under five deaths than UNICEF’s contribution to achieving the Under-five mortallty rate, 1990 and 2009 (Deaths per 1,000 live births) Furthermore, among the 67 million children who are such as geographical location, income poverty, ethnicity, gender, development strategies without such a targeted approach. It proves that the MDGs in 2010 included assistance to Sub-Saharan Africa out of primary school, some 43 per cent are in sub- conflict and crisis. equity approach is the right practice in pursuing the MDGs. more than 150 countries and territories, 180 129 Saharan Africa, with an additional 27 per cent living adding to remarkable strides made in Southern Asia 122 in South and West Asia. previous years towards improving 69 Oceania children’s health, expanding access 76 UNICEF’s ACTIONS FOR EQUITY 59 to quality education and protecting Caucasus & Central Asia 78 Within countries children’s rights in crisis ridden places. 37 GOOD HEALTH QUALITY South-Eastern Asia Across all developing countries, children from for all 73 36 the poorest families are twice as likely to die EDUCATION Western Asia for all 68 before the age of five as children from the 32 Northern Africa wealthiest families within the same country. The Opportunity to receive an 80 26 poorest children are about one and a half times education is vital to each and Latin America & the Caribbean less likely to be immunised against measles, every child. UNICEF worked 52 Asselin © UNICEF/NYHQ2011-0414/Olivier 23 Eastern Asia while the poorest women are two to three times with a strong focus on equity © UNICEF/NYHQ2011-0644/Olivier Asselin Asselin © UNICEF/NYHQ2011-0644/Olivier 45 19 less likely to use maternity services. in 2010 to deliver education Developed regions THE ROAD However, progress in reaching the 15 to the most marginalised 7 © UNICEF/NYHQ2011-0183/Asad Zaidi to equity Goals is uneven, both within and across Developing regions In education, gender disparities cut deep. Only children. The number of female countries, with the world’s poorest 99 53 of 171 countries with available data claim to teachers in Yemen’s rural areas 66 With programmes in more than being left behind. 0 50 100 150 200 have the same numbers of girls and boys in both Supporting national increased beyond 1,000 with 150 developing countries, how 1990 2009 2015 target primary and secondary schools. UNICEF support of training that immunisation campaigns does UNICEF get resources and sensitises teachers on gender. an Immunisation remains a highly cost-effective way to prevent services to those who most Women teachers reassure certain diseases. However, one in five children still misses desperately need them? By any parents in the decision to send essential vaccinations in 12 low vaccination coverage countries means available. “Our obligation identified by UNICEF, requiring step-up effort. UNICEF believes their girls to school, at present unacceptable pushing the enrolment of girls is not to some reaching that fifth child with all the vaccines currently available Everything from bicycles and in Yemen above the national inequity children, but to would prevent 2 million child deaths every year. mules to canoes, motorcycles and average of only 73 girls for horse-drawn carts are UNICEF’s all children.” every 100 boys, to 88. In 2010, UNICEF launched national immunisation campaigns in best logistical partners. Anthony Lake, UNICEF Executive Director these countries and vaccinated close to 170 million children against measles – and 1 billion children against polio.