RFQ- FY22 – 122 Research on Anti-Racism Colonialism and Sponsorship Final 26-04-2022
- Background Information on Plan International
Plan International is an independent development and humanitarian organisation that advances children’s rights and equality for girls.
We strive for a just world, working together with children, young people, our supporters and partners. We support children’s rights from birth until they reach adulthood and enable children to prepare for and respond to crises and adversity. We drive changes in practice and policy at local, national and global levels using our reach, experience and knowledge.
For over 80 years we have been building powerful partnerships for children, and we are active in over 75 countries.
- Background/Context
International child sponsorship typically involves the pairing of an individual, identifiable child, or young adult in a low- or middle-income country with an individual donor or sponsor in a high or middle-income country. Regular payments by sponsors, accompanied by the exchange of personal information, characterise a fundraising phenomenon which currently links sponsors to more than eight million children globally.[1]
[1] Watson, B. (2015) ‘The origins of international child sponsorship’.
Child sponsorship has been a foundation of Plan International’s work since it was formed in 1937 by British journalist John Langdon-Davies and refugee worker Eric Muggeridge in 1937.[2] The original aim was to provide food, accommodation and education to children whose lives had been disrupted by the Spanish Civil War. However, Langdon-Davies conceived what he called the “foster parent idea” where he reckoned that a British “foster parent” could support a Spanish child refugee in a well-run children’s colony for one shilling a day. Through letters, the “foster parent” would directly experience the meaning of his or her gift. This idea of a personal relationship between a child and a sponsor – a model that puts the child at the centre – has remained the core of what we do.
Plan International is currently engaged with 1.4 million sponsored children in 48 countries through sponsorship activities, communications and programmes. Plan International’s child sponsorship model takes a community-based approach, and particularly seeks to engage with children from marginalised communities. The approach aims to establish meaningful relationships with sponsored children and their families, and commit to long-term interventions in their communities. These two types of engagement – on an individual and on a community level – interact and are mutually beneficial for the children and their communities. Sponsored children’s individual development ripples out across the community as they become healthier, learn more and help to bring positive change. The tailored interventions enable the community as a whole to develop and, in turn, improve prospects for all children and their families. Characteristics of Plan International’s sponsorship approach include:
- One-to-one match between a child and a sponsor.
- Provides opportunity to take action for positive change.
- Continuity of funding, as opposed to a single donation.
- Provides development information to raise awareness and commitment towards positive change for children.
- Building relationships through the exchange of communications.
- Ensures Plan International’s work is connected to individual children and families.
- Enables accountability to all parties.