Press Release

K.I.N.D Fund Marks Most Successful Fundraising Season to Date with More Than $5 Million Raised Since November 2022

 Created By MSNBC’S Lawrence O’Donnell, Host of ‘The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell,’ in Partnership With UNICEF USA, K.I.N.D. Provides Desks and Scholarships to Children in Africa to Promote Better Education

 

This Marks The Most Successful K.I.N.D. Fund Season Since The Project’s Launch in 2010

NEW YORK (January 19, 2023) – Marking its 12th and most successful year to date, MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell, in partnership with UNICEF USA, announced that the K.I.N.D. Fund has raised more than $5.2 million since the start of the 2022 campaign on Giving Tuesday (November 30, 2022).

Dedicated to empowering school children in Malawi, Africa by providing school desks to improve learning environments and scholarships to allow girls to attend secondary school, K.I.N.D. (Kids In Need of Desks) continues to make a real impact for Malawi’s next generation. 

“I am in awe of the generosity of our MSNBC audience,” said MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell. “There are hundreds of thousands of students sitting at desks instead of on the floor today thanks entirely to our audience. There are thousands of girls in high school today thanks entirely to our audience. Small acts of kindness can make a big difference for these children in Malawi."

“Due to prevalent poverty in Malawi, many girls, especially from remote rural areas, cannot afford to attend secondary school and often drop out. The K.I.N.D. Fund scholarships have enabled these vulnerable girls to access and complete quality secondary education, thus giving them a chance to succeed in life and transform their communities,” said UNICEF Malawi Country Representative, Rudolf Schwenk. “UNICEF deeply appreciates the Fund's contribution which has made a powerful impact on girls’ education and has provided desks to thousands of children in Malawi.”

Since its launch in December 2010, K.I.N.D. has raised nearly $39 million in funding and delivered over 310,000 school desks, directly impacting nearly 1.1 million learners across the country and it has provided scholarships for more than 26,000 girls.

As of 2022, approximately 62 percent of school children in Malawi do not have a desk or chair, making it extremely difficult to attend or stay in school and more likely to drop out. Additionally, less than half of school-age girls complete primary school with even fewer continuing on to secondary school.

With K.I.N.D. fundraising, scholarship programs and assistance from the determined teams on the ground in Malawi in consultation with the Malawi Ministry of Education, UNICEF and MSNBC aim to improve those statistics and provide school children with support to continue their education and reach their full potential.

 A donation of $80 provides a desk and bench for two to three students in Malawi. $185 provides a one-year secondary school scholarship to a girl in Malawi.

Lawrence O’Donnell is the host of The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell, which airs weeknights at 10 p.m. ET on MSNBC.  Each night, O’Donnell relies on his extraordinary background in politics, entertainment and news to provide the last word on the biggest issues and most compelling stories of the day.

For more information on K.I.N.D. please visit: www.unicefusa.org/kind. Stories of the program’s impact, including profiles of students who have received desks and scholarships, are available here: lastworddesks.msnbc.com

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About MSNBC
MSNBC is the premier destination for breaking news and in-depth analysis through commentary and informed perspectives. Reaching more than 96 million households worldwide, MSNBC offers live news coverage, influential voices, and award-winning documentary programming – 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. MSNBC also delivers breaking news and information across a variety of platforms including msnbc.com, MSNBC on Sirius XM radio and TuneIn. The MSNBC App for iOS also provides access to live streaming and full episodes of select programs. Watch MSNBC anywhere: On Demand, online or across mobile and connected TVs. MSNBC is part of the NBCUniversal News Group, a division of NBCUniversal, one of the world’s leading media and entertainment companies, which is owned by Comcast Corporation. For more corporate information, visit www.nbcuniversal.com.

About UNICEF

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) works in more than 190 countries and territories to pursue a more equitable world for every child. UNICEF has helped save more children’s lives than any other humanitarian organization, by providing health care and immunizations, safe water and sanitation, nutrition, education, emergency relief and more.

UNICEF USA advances the global mission of UNICEF by rallying the American public to support the world’s most vulnerable children. Together, we are working toward a world that upholds the rights of all children and helps every child thrive. For more information, visit www.unicefusa.org.

Press Contacts:

MSNBC

Natalie Munio, MSNBC PR, Natalie.Munio@nbcuni.com

UNICEF USA

Nina Marie Costa, Deputy Director, UNICEF USA, nmcosta@unicefusa.org