Christmas presents that won't get re-gifted or end up in the bin

Health

Peanut butter might seem like an odd present, but our Plumpy’nut® isn’t just a gift, it is an absolute life-saver. In times of drought and famine, Plumpy’nut® brings severely malnourished children back to health. It is enriched with essential vitamins and minerals, along with peanuts, vegetable oil, sugar, and skimmed milk powder. A few sachets a day can be all it takes to save a child’s life.

Jean was brought to a nutrition centre in Madagascar with symptoms of acute severe malnutrition. Through a UNICEF program, his mother was taught how to identify early signs of malnutrition. Here, he is eating a package of Plumpy’nut® that delivers all the nutrients he needs to survive and thrive.  
 

Effective and inexpensive, Plumpy’nut® has meant the difference between life and death for millions of children like Jean. 

Education

Imagine waking up to find your school reduced to rubble. This is the reality for millions of displaced children who have been caught in the middle of conflict and violence. When a region is plunged into conflict children bear the devastating consequences. The city of Marawi in the Philippines was devastated during five months of fighting. Families were forced to flee from their homes.

In those five months of conflict, more than 179,000 school-aged children were affected. In that time, there was 56 attacks on schools, education personnel and health-care facilities.

Teachers such as Hayamerah, remember that time well.

“You could feel the Impact of the bombing here,” Hayamerah says.
“But as teachers it was our responsibility to keep teaching during the chaos. I owe it to the children to be here."

UNICEF provides support to schools in the region that have been affected by this conflict by supplying books, pens and backpacks. $300 can provide a School in a Box, which provides all that a child needs to resume their education.

Vaccinations

Access to vaccinations is especially hard for families living in disadvantage, difficult-to-reach communities or crowded refugee camps – like this one in Jordan.

Settlements like this struggle to maintain proper hygiene, dramatically increasing the spread of disease. In these challenging situations, families rely on UNICEF-funded mobile health centres as the only line of defence against diseases.

Vaccines are essential in stopping the spread of diseases such as measles, polio, and rubella. It only takes $85 to save 140 lives from measles; a devastating but preventable disease.