U.N.I.C.E.F. CARDS

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32708, 10 September 1971, Page 5

U.N.I.C.E.F. CARDS

Today, 900 million childj ren throughout the world ! still suffered from hunger, I malnutrition, disease and | illiteracy, Mrs Doreen J Grant said at a luncheon ! meeting to celebrate the twenty - fifth anniversary of U.N.I.C.E.F. and to open its 1971 greeting card sales campaign yesterday. The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund had been founded one year after the formation of the United Nations to look after orphans 'in war-tom Europe, she said. This need to help children continued in spite of the work of many international welfare organisations.

Mrs Grant, who is president of the Christchurch Regional U.N.I.C.E.F. Committee, said .she was often perturbed to find that so many people did not know what the organisation did, and that it was the only specialised agency run by the United Nations to help children. This children’s fund spent $63.9m on assistance programmes last year and was now budgeting to spend sloom in 1975 to meet the expected increase of 270 m children under 15 in the developing countries. U.N.I.C.E.F. made no individual contributions; it helped people help themselves, she said. Last year the New Zealand Government made a grant of $120,00 to the fund. But 10 per cent of the money spent by U.N.I.C.E.F. came from the world-wide sale of greeting cards and calendars. "Every box sold helps some child in some part of the world to a better education and a better life.” The Mayoress (Mrs Guthrey) officially opened the selling campaign and bought the first boxes of cards. “If buying these beautiful cards is going to help children even get water that is pure and free from disease, then we will be helping a wonderful cause. I hope the cards sell like ‘hot cakes’— or rather, like ‘hot pants,” Mrs Guthrey said. The photograph shows Mrs Guthrey, second from right, buying the first boxes of cards from Mrs Grant (left), while the Ambassador of the Republic of China (Mr K. C. Shah) and Mrs Shah look on.