For over six decades, the General Federation of Women's Clubs (GFWC) has supported UNICEF's efforts to ensure access to clean water, proper sanitation facilities, health services, education, and protection during emergencies to the world's most vulnerable children.

The U.S. Fund for UNICEF is grateful for GFWC’s continued support and is pleased to announce a new partnership: UNICEF's Healthy Villages in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Years of civil war have limited progress in improving health and sanitation services throughout the DRC, and the area has one of the highest child mortality rates in the world. Children are vulnerable to frequent illness and diseases such as diarrhea and cholera. In rural areas, where health education and services are scarce, children are far more likely to die from these preventable causes. Using marketing techniques and community commitments, the Healthy Villages program seeks to empower villagers to improve and maintain their own sanitation systems and to adopt healthy hygiene practices.

The Healthy Villages in the DRC program is national in scope, but implemented at the local village level with community participation and direct management. GFWC will support UNICEF’s Healthy Villages program in Bas Congo and Eastern Zone, reaching approximately 6,650 people in 10 villages. Specifically, UNICEF supports the DRC Government’s efforts to build and maintain basic systems to provide clean water to the village, as well as build and maintain a simple latrine for every home in the village.

Since it was founded in 1890, the General Federation of Women's Clubs has been a unifying force, bringing together local women's clubs from around the country and throughout the world. In all 50 states and more than a dozen countries, GFWC members work locally to create global change. GFWC clubwomen are mothers, sisters, wives, daughters, doctors, teachers, professionals, and community leaders who are dedicated to enhancing the lives of others through volunteer service.

• Download a donation form for the Healthy Villages campaign
• View a video of the Healthy Villages campaign in the DRC
• Read a story from a Healthy Village in the DRC
• Read a story from a Healthy School in the DRC
• Additional U.S. Fund for UNICEF resources