Every day, nearly 5,700 children become orphans due to war, poverty, disease, or disaster. Today, over 153 million children worldwide live without stable family support, facing risks that threaten their safety, development, and future.
Millions of children around the world are orphaned or made vulnerable by conflict, poverty, disease, and disaster. Armed conflict and displacement often separate children from their families, while poverty and health crises, such as HIV/AIDS and malnutrition, limit access to food, shelter, and care. Natural disasters destroy homes and livelihoods, and in many cases, children are left behind due to neglect or abandonment under extreme social and economic pressure.
Without stable family support, these children face heightened risks of exploitation, trafficking, and child labour. Many are forced into early marriage or exposed to gender-based violence. Their access to education and healthcare is often limited or non-existent, and the psychological trauma of loss and instability can have lifelong effects. Legal protections and social safety nets are often weak or absent, leaving them even more vulnerable.
Penny Appeal supports orphans and vulnerable children through a range of holistic, community-based interventions. We strengthen families with cash support, parenting resources, and income-generating programs to prevent separation. Where family care is not possible, we promote safe alternatives like foster care, kinship care, and ethical adoption. We also deliver essential services, education, healthcare, and psychosocial support, while training local leaders to identify and protect at-risk children. Through partnerships with NGOs and governments, we advocate for sustainable, rights-based solutions that prioritise every child’s wellbeing.
“The best house among the Muslims is the house in which an orphan is treated well.”
Sunan Ibn Majah
