Results for Children

On Behalf of the World's Children

Dear friends,

After the rollercoaster of 2020, 2021 brought continuing and new challenges. We saw a chaotic and violent regime change in Afghanistan after the U.S. troop withdrawal. Haiti – a nation already suffering from poverty and hunger – faced the assassination of their president, followed by an earthquake of 7.2 magnitude. Here in the U.S., Hurricane Ida left families homeless in parts of Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi. And the impact of the learning crisis is felt across the world, with many children still out of school or dropping out of education completely.

Today, as a result of climate change, conflict and COVID, a global hunger and food insecurity crisis is ravaging more than 40 countries. And nearly 200 million children are living in lethal war zones, experiencing life-changing consequences.

It’s a lot to process, not only as humanitarians, but as humans.

But with all of this devastation comes good, too. In 2021, we saw an incredible outpouring from our supporters, corporate partners and others who shared our outrage and compassion. Our phones didn’t stop ringing and our website got more traffic than ever, with existing and new supporters stepping up to demonstrate their generosity and commitment– and to raise their voices. It’s this collective good that helps give every child a chance to be healthy, educated and protected. Truly, a movement of millions.

Although travel and movement were still limited in 2021, we were able to leverage our local, in-country partners to make incredible, scalable impact:

• We restarted our work in all of the 10 provinces in Afghanistan, and are in the process of a massive scale-up to address increased needs.
  

• We maintained our steadfast commitment to the children of Yemen, a country now entering the seventh year of a catastrophic humanitarian crisis. Amidst unspeakable horrors, we are saving children’s lives, helping them cope with the impact of conflict, recover and resume their childhoods.

• Here in the U.S., our emergencies team responded to the influx of Afghan families at Fort Bliss, creating child-friendly spaces and private areas where mothers and caregivers could change diapers and nurse their children. Our work for children in rural communities grew again, with new Head Start programs added and deeper engagement in 12 states on early education as well as food insecurity.

• Our policy, advocacy and campaigning team – including Save the Children Action Network – generated 601,000 messages to lawmakers, urging them to invest in children. We saw significant legislative wins in Washington, New Mexico and Colorado. And we amplified the voices of American families struggling through the COVID pandemic, as we pressed Congress to pass the American Rescue Plan, which included $39 billion to stabilize child care and $12 billion for expanded child nutrition programs.

Thanks to our supporters, we achieved remarkable results for children last year. Together, we reached more than 183 million children, including 837,000 here in the United States. Our total operating revenue was $949.9 million, up 8% from 2020.

Please, take a moment to page through our results from 2021 and read the heartwarming stories of remarkable children whose lives were impacted. As you do, you’ll see how our commitment to create lasting and irreversible change for children continues into 2022 and beyond.