• On December 11, the anniversary of the creation of UNICEF is remembered.

    • Known as the United Nations Children's Fund, it is a United Nations agency responsible for providing humanitarian and developmental aid to children worldwide.

    • The agency is among the most widespread and recognizable social welfare organizations in the world, with a presence in 192 countries and territories.

    • UNICEF's activities include providing immunizations and disease prevention, administering treatment for children and mothers with HIV, enhancing childhood and maternal nutrition, improving sanitation, promoting education, and providing emergency relief in response to disasters.

    • Motto is "Every child has the right to grow up in a safe and inclusive environment".

    • Headquartered in New York City, it is one of the members of the United Nations Development Group and its Executive Committee.

    • In 2018, UNICEF assisted in the birth of 27 million babies, administered pentavalent vaccines to an estimated 65.5 million children, provided education for 12 million children, treated four million children with severe acute malnutrition, and responded to 285 humanitarian emergencies in 90 countries.

    • UNICEF has received recognition for its work, including the Nobel Peace Prize in 1965, the Indira Gandhi Prize in 1989 and the Princess of Asturias Award in 2006.

    • The United Nations General Assembly created UNICEF on December 11, 1946 when children devastated as a solution to the growing need to for emergency assistance for children affected by World War II.

    • Ludwik Rajchman, a Polish bacteriologist, is regarded as the founder of UNICEF and was its first chairman from 1946 to 1950.  

(The author is a trainer for Civil Services aspirants. The views expressed here are personal.)