February 9, 2006 (WESTPORT, CT) – Save the Children is advising the Bush Administration and Congress that significant cuts in international child health and education programs in the Administration's FY 2007 budget could severely impact the world’s poorest children, leaving them without access to life-saving health measures or a basic education.

The Administration’s proposed budget cuts would reduce funding for child survival programs by nearly 10 percent and education programs by 44 percent.

"More than 30,000 children under 5 die every day from preventable causes that would be unthinkable as a threat to children's health in the U.S., and more than 100 million children globally - the majority of them girls - wake up each morning without an opportunity to see the inside of a classroom," said Charles MacCormack, President and CEO of Save the Children. “More funding, not less, is urgently needed, to prevent these tragic and unnecessary deaths, and help ensure that these children receive a basic education.”

"U.S. leadership has played a critical role in providing the funding and expertise that have saved millions of children's lives and opened the door for millions more to go to school,” MacCormack added. “The Administration's proposed cuts fall short of children’s needs and threaten to undermine the progress achieved to date."

While the budget does include increases in funding for international assistance initiatives such as the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA), the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), and the President’s Malaria Initiative, these laudable gains do not justify cuts to other essential programs that aide the world’s youngest and poorest. Save the Children urges Congress to increase funding for child survival and basic education, while maintaining support for other critical international assistance programs.

“There are proven, low-cost ways to prevent these needless young deaths and fulfill a child’s dream of going to school,” said Charles MacCormack. “But increased, not reduced, funding is urgently needed to make this happen.”