What your £15 can achieve

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What your £15 per month can achieve

Cristina Galimberti, from Bristol, is a typical child sponsor. She has sponsored Concilie, from Burundi, for three years. She gives £15 a month.

In a typical month the money is divided like this:

£12: helping Concilie in Burundi

a well, clean water, and a brighter future
Most of Cristina’s donation goes straight to work on projects in Concilie’s village. In this video she told us how their lives have been transformed by the well the village was able to build.

conflict resolution and other projects
Up to 20% of Cristina’s money benefits children and adults throughout Burundi. Concilie grew up fleeing from violence. Her little brother died in a refugee camp when he was just 4 years old. One of the projects that child sponsorship pays for is making sure the next generation will not suffer the same fate.

Tracking, monitoring and managing projects
Every penny we spend has the maximum impact. That means we have to invest in tracking and monitoring our projects.

£3: helping children all over the world through our work in the UK

campaigning for a better future
Some of the things that keep children like Concilie poor can be best dealt with by politicians and corporations in the UK. Our campaign team and thousands of volunteers turn tight budgets into real changes to UK policy that affect people all over the world.

investment in recruiting more child sponsors
In 2010, we raised £7 for every £1 we spent on fundraising. That’s an achievement we’re really proud of. Our fundraising team are constantly finding better ways to raise more money from less. You can help by telling your friends about child sponsorship today.

administration
We keep administration costs down to an absolute minimum, but we do have to spend a small amount of your money so that there are people available to answer your phone calls, and web pages like this one to let you know how child sponsorship works!

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This year, we hope to find sponsors for
over 11,000 children. But right now...

Over 9000 children are waiting

Sponsor where the need is greatest »

Sponsor a child in Afghanistan

Access to water is extremely difficult in Aghanistan. Drought is common and waterborne diseases are rife. ActionAid works with communities to build wells and pipe water to villages, as well as training communities to maintain the system. Education and rehabilitation of ex-child soldiers are also priorities.

Sponsor a child in Bangladesh

418 children are waiting for sponsorship

Our work in Bangladesh focuses around the slums of Dhaka and the lowlands of Netrakona, which is particularly vulnerable to cyclones and flooding. Safe, clean water is especially a problem and ActionAid are working with communities to build tube wells and teach communities how to maintain them.

SPONSOR IN BANGLADESH

Sponsor a child in Brazil

In Brazil we work in the favelas (slums) outside of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, as well as rural areas in the north. In the favelas gangs, violence and intimidation flourish. Children are especially at risk because they only go to school for half a day. We are establishing centres to keep children away from gangs and teach them new skills.

Sponsor a child in Burundi

1435 children are waiting for sponsorship

Burundi's child mortality rate is one of the highest in the world, with 1 in 5 dying before their fifth birthday. Amongst our work here ActionAid are focussing on improving healthcare, especially ante and post-natal care. Education and livelihood training are also priorities for the country.

SPONSOR IN BURUNDI

Sponsor a child in Cambodia

Three decades of civil war has made Cambodia one of the poorest countries in Asia. With no formal property ownership system, powerful people are taking land and leaving poor people landless. ActionAid are working with families to teach them their rights, helping them reclaim land and improve farming techniques.

Sponsor a child in China

Whilst China has developed rapidly in recent years, this has mainly been confined to urban regions. Many people living in rural areas are still very poor and lack essentials like healthcare and education. ActionAid works with the poorest and most marginalised in these areas, as well as migrant workers.

Sponsor a child in Ecuador

ActionAid works predominantly in the Napo region. Large-scale cultivation of African Palm is destroying the way of life for poor indigenous subsistence farmers. We are working with farmers to test new methods so that families can increase the amount of food they grow.

Sponsor a child in Ethiopia

In some rural areas of Ethiopia up to 85% of people are illiterate. Although primary schools exist they are badly equipped and poor families cannot afford the fees or equipment. ActionAid works with local people and government teachers to set up learning centres which offer lessons at flexible times to fit around essential farm work.

Sponsor a child in Gambia

The majority of the population in Gambia relies on agriculture to survive, yet only 17% of land is suitable for farming. Unpredictable weather has caused severe poverty for rural people. ActionAid is working with farmers to improve the supply of water as well as farming techniques.

Sponsor a child in Ghana

Like many African countries, poor children in Ghana have little chance of getting an education because they're needed to work - this is particularly an issue for girls. ActionAid is teaching the community the importance of education and working to establish informal education centres with lessons timed to fit around chores. We also work to improve healthcare and supplies of clean water.

Sponsor a child in Guatemala

Poor diet seriously affects the health of people in Guatemala, especially mothers and children. Many communities are very remote so people can't reach their nearest health centre. ActionAid are helping communities set up health centres which will bring health care into remote areas. We also work to improve education and livelihood.

Sponsor a child in Haiti

251 children are waiting for sponsorship

ActionAid works predominantly in the far west and Thiotte regions of Haiti - isolated areas where basic services are virtually non-existent and women and children have to walk miles to fetch water. ActionAid is helping to build both family and community water cisterns.

SPONSOR IN HAITI

Sponsor a child in India

Our work in India is predominantly with the Dalit communities - a group of people at the bottom of the caste system. As the poorest people, Dalits are expected to do the most degrading jobs and are excluded from society. ActionAid is working to help improve access to essentials - clean water, healthcare, education and livelihoods.

Sponsor a child in Kenya

81 children are waiting for sponsorship

Dinah breaks stones for construction work every day from 6am until nightfall, often without lunch or breakfast. The money she makes will buy about 500g of maize after 2 days work, which is not enough to feed her family. Someone like Dinah urgently needs your help. Through child sponsorship, you can change a life.

SPONSOR IN KENYA

Sponsor a child in Lesotho

Around a quarter of people in Lesotho go to bed hungry because there is so little land available for farming. ActionAid are working with families to grow better crops so that they not only have enough to eat, but they have surplus to sell. We also work to improve education and healthcare.

Sponsor a child in Liberia

17 children are waiting for sponsorship

Liberia is a country scarred by 14 years of civil war. Poverty is most acute in rural areas like Tchein and Konobo, where farming is the only source of food and income. ActionAid is working with the communities to ensure children gain a quality education, parents are able to make a living and all families have access to safe, clean water.

SPONSOR IN LIBERIA

Sponsor a child in Malawi

Weakened by malnutrition, many children in Malawi fall victim to preventable diseases. They can't get healthcare because families are too poor to pay, or the services are too far away. ActionAid works with local traditional healers and government health authorities to provide good healthcare within communities.

Sponsor a child in Mozambique

333 children are waiting for sponsorship

ActionAid's sponsorship programme is mainly in the Tres de Fevereiro south of Mozambique. Here there is just one school with eight teachers responsible for 600 children. Teachers often run two classes at the same time. ActionAid are working to improve education by establishing non-formal education centres.

SPONSOR IN MOZAMBIQUE

Sponsor a child in Nepal

ActionAid works with the most vulnerable people of the lower castes, mainly Dalit communities. Normally, Dalit families own the least fertile plots of land, so ActionAid is working together we communities to improve the amount of food they can grow, as well as setting up credit groups so that people can start businesses.

Sponsor a child in Nicaragua

ActionAid works in the remote Kukra Hill area in the east. Over 60% of teachers aren't trained and only 40% of children go to school. As well as renovating schools and providing equipment, we are training teachers so that children can receive quality education.

Sponsor a child in Nigeria

123 children are waiting for sponsorship

ActionAid is mainly working in the north of Nigeria where, after years of government neglect, health services, schools and roads are in ruins. Working with communities and the local government , we are helping to improve education - especially adult literacy - healthcare and supplies of clean water.

SPONSOR IN NIGERIA

Sponsor a child in Pakistan

In Pakistan illiteracy is a major problem, especially amongst women and girls. ActionAid's work is ensuring that girls education is a priority. We also work with women, helping them to learn how to read and write through adult literacy projects.

Sponsor a child in Peru

109 children are waiting for sponsorship

In the Caraveli province, near the south coast of Peru, basic essentials like water and education are scarce. Fishing is important to the area but without money to buy equipment fishermen struggle to make a living. ActionAid is working to help them improve their catch and their income.

SPONSOR IN PERU

Sponsor a child in Rwanda

Almost two thirds of Rwandans live on less than a dollar a day. As well as peace building work following the genocide of 1994, ActionAid are helping to rebuild the destroyed school systems by training teachers and getting communities more involved in education - with particular focus on education girls.

Sponsor a child in Senegal

171 children are waiting for sponsorship

Senegal has the fastest growing population in Africa which has created pressure on the education system. Only half of children are able to enrol in a primary school. ActionAid are working with poor communities to get more affordable schooling, especially in rural areas, and to improve healthcare and water supplies.

SPONSOR IN SENEGAL

Sponsor a child in Sierra Leone

As one of the world's poorest countries Sierra Leone has extremely poor infrastructure. Healthcare is particularly problematic as there are few health centres and medicines are in short supply. ActionAid are helping to establish health centres, as well as running immunisation programmes for children.

Sponsor a child in Somaliland

194 children are waiting for sponsorship

Somaliland is one of the poorest countries in the world with three quarters of people living in poverty and one in ten children dying before their fifth birthday. ActionAid has been working in Somaliland for over 15 years. Our focus is on providing safe, clean water, improving livelihoods and education.

SPONSOR IN SOMALILAND

Sponsor a child in South Africa

The stigma attached to HIV and AIDS and the lack of sex education means controlling the spread of the disease is a massive task in South Africa. ActionAid are helping provide education in women's groups to help them protect their children from the illness and reduce the stigma. We also work to improve livelihoods and education.

Sponsor a child in Tanzania

Many children in rural areas of Tanzania are unable to attend school because they can't afford the uniform or because they are needed to stay at home for chores. ActionAid are establishing local schools for these communities with timetables that fit their routines. We also work to improve livelihood.

Sponsor a child in Uganda

Health facilities are very limited in rural Uganda. ActionAid trains village health workers who teach the wider community about sanitation and immunisation - and our immunisation programme has already helped thousands of children. We also work to improve education supplies of clean water and farming methods.

Sponsor a child in Vietnam

Trafficking is an increasingly serious problem in Vietnam. Families desperate to give their children a better chance send them off to work, but children often find themselves forced into prostitution or child labour. ActionAid is working to tackle the root causes of trafficking. We also work to improve health, education and clean water.

Sponsor a child in Zambia

Many poor families in rural Zambia are dependent on subsistence farming to survive, but droughts and floods are common. ActionAid provides immediate help during floods with food and shelter but we also work long-term with families - helping build new homes and provide seeds and tools so they can farm again.

Sponsor a child in Zimbabwe

86 children are waiting for sponsorship

With the fourth highest rate of HIV and AIDS in the world, thousands of children in Zimbabwe have lost one of both parents and are now struggling to look after themselves and their siblings. ActionAid works to ensure these children can go to school and are cared for in the community.

SPONSOR IN ZIMBABWE

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