I’ve seen exactly how aid works

I am concerned with the recent criticism of executive salaries at charities and whether we should send aid abroad. As a volunteer with Save the Children for the past 30 years I know aid works and that we need very professional people at the top to make all this happen.
By The Newsroom
Published 18th Aug 2013, 08:10 BST

Last month I led a group of volunteers to Liberia in West Africa to see some of the projects that Save the Children supports. Liberia is the fifth poorest country in the world and without the foreign aid that goes in to help vulnerable children and their families the situation would be even worse.

We visited some schools, millions of children there get no, or very little, education because they work or missed out during the war. We also went to a refugee camp where people come from Cote d’Ivoire to safety where Save the Children runs safe play areas for children, preschools and the primary schools to help these children start to regain their childhood.

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We visited clinics where women can give birth safely, receive antenatal and neonatal care as well as advice on HIV/Aids and contraception.

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Save the Children is running an appeal to build six more clinics in the country which will also include maternal waiting homes so that a mother does not have to walk up to nine hours while in labour to give birth at the nearest clinic.

At the moment many of them do not make it and have their babies by the side of the road. The maternal death and child mortality rate is very high but this will be dramatically reduced with these new clinics.

After a lot of work by aid agencies the Liberian government has been providing free health care for the last 3 years but they do not think they can sustain this if aid from foreign governments is reduced. Many people we met there are very concerned that this may happen.

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I have seen first hand how aid helps and I know that in order to deliver efficient, cost effective programmes we need experienced, committed people at the top in order to ensure we deliver on our promises and use the funds in the best way possible on sustainable projects that help countries like Liberia to recover and improve their own economy.

Save the Children spends 88p in every £1 directly on our projects and this can only happen if we have an efficient, well run organisation.

For more information go to www.savethechildren.org.uk

Marilyn Payne, Volunteer Leader for Warwickshire, Save the Children

Related topics:Warwickshire