Protecting kids is everyone's responsibility.

Of all the things children need to grow up at their potential, one of the most urgent is safety from harm. Yet millions of children the world over still experience abuse, neglect, exploitation and other forms of violence that derail their development. Harm to children can be physical, mental, emotional or sexual. It knows no ethnic, religious or cultural boundaries, and it can happen at the hands of anyone in a child’s life: strangers or teachers, peers or parents.

Research shows that chronic exposure to adverse childhood experiences such as violence can cause the brain to experience toxic stress, disrupting healthy development and causing problems that often persist into adulthood. The good news is that violence against children is completely preventable. At ChildFund, we’re committed to helping create a world where it no longer exists.

How does ChildFund work to protect children?

We support families to promote their children’s well-being within safe environments. This means educating caregivers about how to interact with their children in healthy ways, as well as helping bolster families’ socioeconomic stability so they can consistently make choices in their children’s best interests.

We educate communities about children’s need for protection, supporting them to create and sustain child protection committees that know how to respond appropriately to abuse, neglect, exploitation and other forms of violence.

We empower children to understand and embrace their own right to protection, helping them find and raise their voices against violence. We advocate alongside them at the local, national and international levels for policy changes that make protecting children a priority.

What do children need protection from?

Spotlight on OSEAC

The online sexual abuse and exploitation of children is one of the fastest growing crimes in the world – and every child is at risk. Watch this video from ChildFund Philippines to learn more about how it happens and why children need our protection now more than ever.

Child Protection Fast Facts:

• An estimated 1 billion children – more than half in the world – experience physical, sexual or emotional violence or neglect each year.

• Three in four children between the ages of 2-4 experience some form of violent discipline on a regular basis.

• Worldwide, one-third of students ages 11-15 have been bullied by their peers during the past month.

• 120 million girls and young women under age 20 have experienced some type of forced sexual contact.

• Half of children under age 5 live with a mother who is a victim of intimate partner violence.

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