UNICEF is the leading children’s organisation, reaching children in more than 150 less-developed countries around the world. UNICEF helps children receive the support, health care and education they need to survive the threats of childhood poverty. It encourages families to educate girls as well as boys. It strives to protect children from violence and abuse, and from exploitation through child labour or trafficking. It also protects children in the midst of war and natural disasters, such as those affected by the recent Myanmar Cyclone and the earthquake in China, and provides emergency assistance. UNICEF upholds the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and works to hold the international community responsible for their promises to children. UNICEF is not funded by the UN. Instead, it relies on voluntary donations to fund our work for children worldwide.