With over 400 million children living in extreme poverty, we must find better solutions.  
 
According to UNICEF’s recent report, a drop in international aid has hampered worldwide efforts to address the needs of children, which ‘could result in the deaths of 4.5 million children under the age of five by 2030, and six million more children out of school by next year’.    

The report makes for sobering reading. Some factors that make children more vulnerable to poverty include: 

  • Living with disability—increased care costs mean more pressure on family finances and less money to spend on children’s other needs. 
  • Parents without income—a child’s well-being is closely tied to their caregivers’ economic security. 
  • Parents without education—rates of poverty rise amongst families when the head of the household has no tertiary education. 
  • Living in a conflict zone—half of all children living in fragile and conflict-affected settings live in extreme poverty. 
  • Displaced from home—heightened risks during transit and upon arrival put children at risk. 
  • Living in a rural area—around 79 per cent of children in extreme poverty live in remote or rural areas. 
    Source: UNICEF, 2025

You might wonder what can be done to help in the face of such staggering need, but despair won’t solve anything. And while none of us can solve this problem by ourselves, God sees and values our compassionate actions, even if they are small.

He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. 
And what does the Lord require of you? 
To act justly and to love mercy 
and to walk humbly with your God. (Micah 6:8)

Mother Teresa famously said, “I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the water to create many ripples.”

When someone becomes a Child Sponsor, we see this ripple effect in action because the support given for that Child Partner also helps their siblings, parents, uncles, aunts, and neighbours.  

Our data shows that each sponsorship helps at least 35 people take steps away from poverty.  

What Does This Mean in Practice? 

Child Sponsors generously commit around $52 each month to fight child poverty.

Many years ago, when Child Sponsorship first started, this money was used to support one child’s monthly needs.  

But today, funds raised by Sponsors are combined to support the creation of much more impactful programs that fight the underlying causes of poverty to the benefit of both the child, and their community. You can read more about Baptist World Aid’s evolution of Child Sponsorship here.

This might look like a Child Partner’s parents receiving agricultural training, teenagers in a Child Partner’s village learning skills to start a dressmaking business, or any number of far-reaching initiatives.  

Sponsors now help create opportunities and pathways out of poverty for families, so the whole community are better able to protect and nurture children. As well as protecting the dignity of parents, this builds the capacity of the community, encouraging long-term self-reliance.  

Sponsors now help create opportunities and pathways out of poverty for families, so the whole community are better able to protect and nurture children. 

And in the long run, it means more children escape poverty because our local Christian Partners are addressing the underlying causes. And an important part of this is supporting parents as they gain skills for income generation and managing their family.

Khusnaj’s Story 

10-year-old Khusnaj (pictured above) lives in Nepal with her parents, two little brothers and grandparents. While deeply loved and cared for by her family, Khusnaj was missing out on school for financial and cultural reasons. When she joined our Partner’s Child Club, her mother, Najira, also joined our Partner’s Self Help Group. There, Najira learned about financial management and hygienic household practices, as well as the importance of education for both her sons and her daughter. As a result, Khusnaj is now enrolled in a bridging course to prepare her for entry into a local school.

By supporting parents and communities as well as children, our local Christian Partners are making a bigger impact on child poverty.

Jesca’s Story 

Jesca is a 21-year-old from Uganda.  

Growing up as the youngest of six, she often went without necessities like clothing and soap. Poverty also contributed to her early marriage.  

Now a mother herself, Jesca participated in our local Christian Partner’s Child Sponsorship program where she gained valuable knowledge about child protection, education, health, and nutrition as well as learning new skills to start her own tailoring business. This business now supports her family and she’s also teaching other young women in the village how to sew.  

‘Many young people in my community have benefited greatly from this project,’ said Jesca. ‘And there is evidence of its success.’ 

Local Communities Supported Towards Self-Sufficiency

Our local Christian Partners know their community well, and support rather than impose solutions on local people. This is important because when these projects are handed back to the community, local leaders are confident to continue in strength, without external support.  

Child Sponsorship means more than supporting a child; it’s equipping and encouraging a community so they can overcome poverty and raise children with more optimistic prospects.   

Jesca’s community is a case in point.  

The transformation in her life had a positive effect on her village, creating momentum and impetus for others to change their lives too.   

In the future, Jesca hopes to establish a training school to teach others and to continue supporting her family, especially in paying school fees. And there are stories like hers all over the world. 

Child poverty is indeed a complex problem that’s not easily solved. But we’re called to prayer, not despair:  

‘Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.’ (Philippians 4:6-7) 

We can trust that God will use the generosity and compassion of his people, causing it to ripple out and bring good to many—just as Mother Teresa’s thrown pebble ripples across the water.  
 
There’s no one answer to solving the heartbreaking problem of child poverty, but Child Sponsorship offers ordinary Australian Christians the opportunity to strengthen communities and bring lasting change that breaks the bonds of intergenerational poverty.