At a glance: Peru

Copa América football tournament dedicated to the children of Peru

© UNICEF Peru/2004/Perez

LIMA, 14 July 2004 – With a campaign entitled “¡Con los niños sí se gana!” (“You win with children!”), the South American Soccer Federation (in Spanish, the Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol or CONMEBOL) and UNICEF are dedicating the Copa América 2004 to the children of the host country, Peru. Together with Euro Cup 2004, Copa América is the most important regional soccer event in the world. It started on 6 July and ends on 25 July 2004.

In addition to the football matches, a series of activities designed to promote messages around early childhood development is taking place. The main message is that children need to be strong and healthy as babies in order to be successful later in life.

“This is just the beginning of a wave of events to make Peruvian children the center of football development,” said UNICEF Representative in Peru Andres Franco. “These activities will enable us to promote children's rights. After all, as any mother in the world can tell you, the passion for football begins with children, when they first begin kicking in the womb."

© UNICEF Peru/2004/Perez

Banners announce the campaign at every match

UNICEF is working in close partnership with CONMEBOL to make this event a huge success not just for the children of Peru, but for the entire region.

This is the first time in Latin America that a sporting event of this magnitude has been dedicated to the children of the host country.  The UNICEF-CONMEBOL alliance is a regional expression of the UNICEF-FIFA global alliance.

UNICEF in Peru

UNICEF has been active in Peru, the host country of the Copa América 2004, for 54 years. Today its programme of cooperation with the Peruvian government enables UNICEF to serve hundreds of rural communities in the Andes and the Amazon, helping to ensure that children in extreme poverty have an adequate diet and the health care, protection and affection they need to fulfil their physical and intellectual potential.