When crises strike – from COVID-19 to natural disasters, war or conflict and epidemics – children, and particularly girls and young women, pay the highest price. Together, we can help empower them to stay safe and fulfill their potential to rewrite their futures.
Globally, 263 million children, are out of school – that’s 7 times the entire population of Canada. Continued school closures caused by the pandemic are robbing 187 children of school meal programs, which can often be a child’s best meal of the day. When a child doesn’t have access to education, proper nutrition and clean water they suffer in all areas of wellbeing – including academic achievements, future economic prosperity and physical and mental health.
Our sponsors are supporting children in 49 countries. Join us today, and together we can help make an even greater difference in children’s lives. Your support will assist children and their families by helping them secure their rights and vital opportunities such as: ensuring more children can go to – and stay in – school or providing immediate and urgent necessities like food and clean water so they can sow the seeds to rewrite their future.
Sponsorship search
Sponsor a child today to start creating life-long change around the world. *Leave blank to meet children enrolled the longest and most in need.
Hi, my name is
Arif
Hi, my name is
Salma
Hi, my name is
Joaquina
Facts on world hunger
If all hungry people in the world formed an imaginary country, this country would be the third largest on the planet.
70%
of people experiencing food insecurity are girls and women.
18%
Only 18 percent of school children in low-income countries receive free or subsidized school meals.
783 million
As many as 783 million people are unsure of where their next meal is coming from.
Start of something special
When you sponsor a child, you’ll receive an information package about them and the community they live in plus photos of them and their family. You’ll also receive an introductory letter from your sponsored child, annual updates about them, their community and country so you can see first-hand how your donations are making an impact.
The power of your sponsorship
When you sponsor a child, you fund life-changing projects in your sponsored child’s community – projects that help children access their basic human rights.
Adequate nutrition
Malnutrition can stunt children's development and pull their focus away from education. With your support, Plan International Canada will teach sustainable farming techniques, support school meal programs, and provide food rations and vouchers in emergencies.
Water and sanitation
Girls often carry the burden of water collection which can mean travelling long distances every day, missing school and being exposed to risky situations along the way. Help girls, families and entire communities gain access to safe, clean water and proper sanitation.
Health care
Each year, around 9 million children die needlessly before they reach their fifth birthday from preventable and treatable illnesses. Together with our sponsors, Plan International Canada works to improve health care for mothers and children, so children have the healthiest start in life.
Education
When you sponsor a child, you help build new schools and work with communities to promote the importance of sending and keeping girls in school.
Family income
Child sponsors help support vocational skills training for youth. This strengthens girls’ economic independence, helping them gain employment and giving them greater decision-making power over their lives.
Child protection
We work to ensure that all children, especially girls, are registered at birth. Without birth registration, children can’t prove their legal age or claim protection under any legislation specifying a minimum age for marriage. Birth certificates also enable children to gain access to critical services and resources.
Help change a child's life.
Three reasons why you should sponsor a child.
Sponsorship benefits the sponsored child
“I was a very poor child in Colombia, but my Canadian sponsor showed me the world through her letters. Now I am 50, with an MBA and have traveled to 15 countries. Thank you Plan and my sponsor Miss Louise Miller.”
- Carlos Aparicio, MBA, Plan International Colombia Board Member and former sponsored child
Child sponsorship benefits the whole community
“I went to visit my sponsored child, Ruby in Ghana, Africa. The money from sponsors funds so many amazing projects that benefit both sponsored children and the children in their community. It makes more of a difference than you can even imagine.”
- Kaitlyn Strickland, Plan International Canada child sponsor
Sponsorship benefits YOU!
“When I visited my sponsored child, Sidonie it was rewarding to see the significant difference I've made in her life and in the community, especially in such a remote place!"
- Eileen Fernandes-Smith, Plan International Canada child sponsor
Still have questions? We can help!
How much does it cost to sponsor a child with Plan International Canada?
Child Sponsorship is $42 per month, which works out to be just over $10 per week.
How does Child Sponsorship work?
Child Sponsorship provides you with a special opportunity to have a unique one-to-one connection with a child and their family in one of the countries where Plan International works. As part of your sponsorship, you can exchange letters and photos, and build a meaningful connection. Each year, you’ll receive updates about your sponsored child and the progress in their community so you can see how you’re helping change lives. Child Sponsorship programming allows us to combine sponsor contributions to establish a trusted partnerships with communities and create lasting change. This helps secure further grant funding from institutional and government donors to grow community-based development projects, like building schools or water taps, which support sponsored children and their communities for years to come.
Do sponsorship contributions go directly to one child?
No. When you sponsor a child, your contributions support that child and the whole community! Your donations collectively support a wide range of projects in your sponsored child's community that are chosen in collaboration with community members. With more than 80 years of experience, we know that the best way to help every child unleash their potential is by them, their families and full communities to create change together, so they can carry on the positive progress for many years to come.