UNICEF Launches Gift Campaign to Eliminate Child Poverty

Leading children's charity Unicef UK will launch a range of gifts to encourage regular donors, in a campaign created by WWAV Rapp Collins.

Some 120,000 potential donors will be contacted by the charity through a direct mail, as they strive to end child poverty and disease in the developing world.

The mailings will include eight gift tags containing details of UNICEF products, including weighing scales for babies, mosquito nets, baby blankets and therapeutic food.

Recipients are asked to return one gift tag with a direct debit mandate to make a monthly donation.

Debbie Stokes, direct marketing officer at UNICEF UK, said: "[The] initiative will enable donors to support UNICEF in a very interactive manner.

"Through the gift tags, donors will be able to choose exactly how their direct debit is spent, enabling them to really see how their donation is making a difference to children's lives."

Last week, the charity sent out free copies of a short story by writer Andrew O'Hagan to encourage readers to make a £2 donation to its Unite for Children, Unite Against Aids appeal. The campaign was also created by WWAV.

UNICEF's recent report, 'Innocenti Social Monitor 2006: Understanding Child Poverty in South-Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States', revealed the persistence of the problem within developing areas of Europe.

The report noted that child poverty is becoming more and more concentrated in certain groups and geographical areas in south-Eastern Europe.

Among the disturbing findings of the report was the latest statistic which shows that for every four children in the region one is living in absolute poverty, despite a recent economic upturn.

The number of institutionalised children remains steady despite a sharp decline in birth rates.

"It is shocking to note the number of children who are placed in institutions throughout the Eastern European region despite having either one or both parents living," says Sharon Payt, World Vision Middle East and Eastern European Region Advocacy Director.