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Where Most Needed

Where Most Needed

In times of immediate need, Compassion steps in to help children

Give to the current greatest need

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Poverty leaves children without any safety net or protection, so when unforeseen circumstances arise, there is often little hope for recovery.

Why giving to Where Most Needed is so important

Over 3 billion people

Over 3 billion people live on less than $2.50 a day

About 16,000 children die each day

About 16,000 Children die each day before celebrating their fifth birthday, mostly from preventable causes

  860 million people

860 million people worldwide continue to live in slums

663 million people

663 million people — one in 10 people — rely on unimproved sources of drinking water

Sources: UNICEF; UNDP; APPS

Through generous supporters, Compassion church partners work effectively to address the most pressing needs of children in our programs.

The Where Most Needed fund is used to meet a variety of needs that have been identified by our local church partners. It will bring resource and empowerment to every nation we work in.

Compassion’s Where Most Needed fund can be distributed between other Critical Needs and respond in circumstances where additional help for those funds is needed. This includes:

  • Water and Sanitation
  • Income Generation
  • Health
  • Education and Training
  • Mums and Babies
  • Infrastructure
  • Disaster Relief
  • Highly Vulnerable Children
  • Indigenous Initiative in Australia
  • Support for children waiting for a sponsor



See your latest impact through Where Most Needed

See how your generosity changed the lives of children this year.
Download our Where Most Needed Impact Report.

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Where Most Needed Stories

Feature Story
11 Apr, 2024

Blessed in Christ by Grace: David’s Story

“One day, I was reading the Bible, the book of Ephesians, and there is a verse there that says, ‘Some are called to become pastors and teachers’ [Eph. 4:11]. And the Lord spoke to me: ‘You will become like that someday.’”.. Read more

28 Oct, 2020

17 Questions Most New Sponsors Ask, Answered

What can I send to my sponsored child? Can I sponsor their sibling? Can I visit my sponsored child? Here are 17 frequently asked questions from new sponsors. .. Read more

02 Mar, 2020

Four Things You Didn't Know About Poverty

We’re used to hearing about the well-known effects of poverty—but are we missing the less-visible ones?.. Read more

FAQs

  • Why does the cost to support an entire Mums and Babies survival project vary between countries?

    The care that families receive from Mums and Babies is specific to them, and differs between countries based on children’s needs and the availability and accessibility of government or other support services. This means the cost to support an entire Mums and Babies survival project also varies between countries ($15,000 - $25,000 per year), and has been determined by the price of local services, families' specific needs and currency conversions.

    For example, in Thailand, free universal healthcare is available to families—but not always accessible, especially in remote areas. Instead of replacing existing services, your support empowers Compassion staff to assess and meet each family’s individual and most urgent needs. For children in Thailand, this includes providing educational and health support to increase rates of breastfeeding, helping to prevent undernutrition and stunting for newborns.

    You can support Mums and Babies for $12 per month or another amount of your choosing. You can also give through a one-off financial contribution. These contributions are pooled to support mothers and babies all around the world.

    If you are interested in supporting an entire Mums and Babies survival project, please contact us.

    You can:

    • Give to Mums and Babies
    • Contact us for more information
  • What are the current ways of supporting Mums and Babies?

    You can support Mums and Babies in a number of ways, either with a once-only donation or ongoing support.

    Here are some of the ways you can choose to give:  

    • A once-off donation of your choice to Mums and Babies will support young families worldwide and provide emergency care for vulnerable children.

    • $12 per month, contributed to Compassion's Critical Needs alongside child sponsorship, supports Mums and Babies globally and provides emergency care for vulnerable children.

    • A $20 once-off donation for a Care for a New Mum Gift of Compassion™, which will be used where support is most needed.

    • A $40 once-off donation for a baby essentials kit through GIFTSOFCOMPASSION™ gives a mum all the necessary supplies to care for her newborn, such as blankets and soaps.

    • A $260 once-off donation for a Start of Life Bundle. This GIFTSOFCOMPASSION™ provides an expectant mum living in poverty with crucial ante and postnatal care.

    • $15,000 once-off donation through Gifts of Compassion™ will nurture a Mums and Babies survival project in a specific community and provide life-saving support to vulnerable mothers and their babies.

  • What is Critical Needs?

    The effects of poverty are devastating and affect every area of a child's life. Compassion's Child Sponsorship Program sets the foundation for life-changing opportunities for every registered child. But every child will, at some point, require help beyond sponsorship's reach.

    Critical Needs provides the additional support necessary for Compassion assisted children to be released from poverty in Jesus' name. Through Critical Needs, supporters like you who are passionate about particular issues, such as safe water, or caring for mothers and babies, can help children most in need worldwide, or support specific projects in vulnerable communities. There are nine Critical Needs areas that you can choose to support, each area addressing an essential aspect of a child's health and development.  

    The nine Critical Needs are:

    • Water and Sanitation
    • Mums and Babies
    • Health
    • Education and Training
    • Infrastructure
    • Highly Vulnerable Children
    • Income Generation
    • Disaster Relief
    • Where Most Needed

    Because we believe that poverty is best addressed through the transformation of the individual child, Critical Needs provides support alongside Compassion's Child Sponsorship Program, not as stand-alone community development activities.

  • Where does Compassion Mums and Babies operate?

    Compassion Mums and Babies works in over 25 developing countries to prevent premature death, secure good health and enable positive development in the youngest, most vulnerable children.

    Mums and Babies always operates through a survival project at the Compassion centre in local communities. It is the first phase of our holistic child development model. From age one, children will transition from Mums and Babies into the Child Sponsorship Program.

    You can

    • Give to Mums and Babies
    • Learn more about the Child Sponsorship Program
  • How does Critical Needs work with Child Sponsorship?

    Critical Needs and the Child Sponsorship Program work side-by-side to equip Compassion's local church partners with the resources to provide holistic support and long-term, customised solutions for children, their families and communities. While the Child Sponsorship Program connects one child with one sponsor, Critical Needs giving is not directed to one child, but provides essential support to thousands of Compassion registered children when they need it most. Every child will benefit from Critical Needs during their time in Compassion’s program, as sponsorship funds alone are not sufficient to cover the varied and often urgent needs of the children we support.

    You can choose to support children globally through Critical Needs or fund an entire project in a specific community. These projects are both reactive and proactive and could include water filters to provide safe water to a community, reconstruction of homes after natural disasters, or income generating activities for adolescents and children's caregivers. The right assistance is identified and provided by the local church in partnership with Compassion.

    You can:

    • Give to Critical Needs
    • Sponsor a child