MANILA ,4 April 2005 – Starbucks today turns over two million pesos (US$ 37,000) to the United Nations Children’s Fund after a four month fund-raising drive for early childhood care and development (ECCD) programmes, and for victims of the tsunami disaster.

UNICEF Executive Director Carol Bellamy receives the donation and lauds Starbucks for supporting UNICEF’s ECCD programme. Bellamy is in the country to attend the 112th Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Assembly, an annual gathering of the world’s Legislators.

In November 2004, Starbucks launched its SparkHope fund raising project. Every Starbucks café adopted one of nine barangays and raised funds to improve early learning or day care services for the children of these barangays. (A barangay or village is the smallest political unit in the Philippines.)

UNICEF believes that children should receive the best possible start in life. ECCD means taking care of the health, nutrition, and learning of children below six years old. Studies show that introducing children to educational activities early in life improves mental development and prepares them for formal schooling and life-long learning.

In the Philippines, over 60 per cent of young children do not experience any form of early childhood education. Many children who enter grade one drop out or fail, a clear indication of poor school readiness and inadequate preparation for learning. With the SparkHope project, Starbucks joins UNICEF to improve these conditions one barangay at a time.