UNICEF Malaysia Annual Report 2024
Because of you, we’re building a better future - for every child
2024 marked 70 years of UNICEF Bersama Malaysia. For seven decades, we’ve worked with the government and people, sharing one dream: for every child to survive and thrive.
Your support carried that dream forward. You made children feel safe, included, and hopeful. Thank you for walking this journey with us.
Because of you, we’re building a better future - for every child.
In 2024, your kindness changed lives.
Because of you, children had the chance to learn. To grow. To simply be children.
You gave them hope. You made a difference.
YOUR GENEROSITY CONTINUES TO CHANGE LIVES
Your donations helped raise RM100.2 million in 2024, reaching children in Malaysia and around the world with the care, protection and opportunities they deserve.
We cannot thank you enough for your support. You have touched and transformed children's lives in so many ways.
UNICEF MALAYSIA 2024 HIGHLIGHTS
In Malaysia, UNICEF works hand in hand with government, partners, and communities to ensure every child is safe, healthy, educated, and included. From nutrition and mental health to digital learning and climate action, your support is helping build a brighter, more equitable future for all children.
Building skills, shaping futures
Thank you for expanding digital learning, 21st century skills, and inclusive education for children in Malaysia.
Future Skills for All has reached almost 58,000 students and teachers since 2020, including 87 educators in 2024 who received tailored training to better support children with disabilities.
The Ministry of Education's Student Tracking System was upgraded with AI technology, helping track over 5 million students and identify those at risk of dropping out - enabling early, targeted interventions.
Fighting child poverty with data and action
Rising living costs are forcing low-income families to make painful choices. Many children go without enough food, care or support. You helped shine a light and spark a change.
UNICEF’s Living on the Edge report (2024) revealed half of surveyed children ate fewer than three meals a day. Many relied on instant noodles to get by.
In response, the government allocated RM5 million under Budget 2025 to pilot a Cash Plus programme with UNICEF - supporting families with children under 5 years old in Kuala Lumpur’s PPRs.
The pilot will combine monthly financial support with parenting and nutrition programmes, giving families not just relief, but a better start for their children. It will be closely monitored to help the government in expanding the programme to more families across the country.
Helping children stay safe when disasters strike
Every year, floods threaten lives across Malaysia. Too often, children are unprepared. You helped change that.
Over 10,000 children and 120 educators were trained to respond to emergencies, with support from the Ministry of Education, the National Disaster Management Agency (NADMA) and local authorities.
Activity books, board games and toolkits made learning about disaster preparedness fun and practical. By equipping children and communities with life-saving knowledge, you’re helping protect children before it’s too late.
Standing by children in the justice system
The courtroom can be a frightening place for a child. But this year, your support helped make the justice system more child-friendly.
Malaysia amended the Evidence of Child Witness Act 2007, a major step toward ensuring children can testify with protection from further trauma.
We worked closely with the government to share good practices in child-sensitive approaches that prioritize children's well-being.
Giving young people the tools to thrive
Mental health matters, especially for young people facing pressure, stigma or trauma. Young people from marginalized communities, including indigenous youth and those with disabilities, are particularly vulnerable.
With your support, schools are stepping in. The WHO-UNICEF Mei & Friends comic series and Teacher’s Guide were adapted with youth in Malaysia and mental health experts, making it easier to talk about emotions and build resilience.
Launched on World Mental Health Day, the initiative trained 60 teachers across 40 teacher training campuses. Next up: reaching 5,000 students in 2025 with tools to support their emotional wellbeing.
WORLD CHILDREN’S DAY 2024: REIMAGINE THE FUTURE
On 20 November, we marked 70 years of UNICEF Bersama Malaysia with a vibrant World Children’s Day celebration.
Joined by Minister Dato’ Sri Hajah Nancy Shukri and over 300 guests, young people and thought leaders came together to explore how AI is shaping children’s education, safety and future opportunities.
Your support brought it all to life, from powerful performances by children, including those with disabilities, to an immersive art installation and public pledges at Pasar Seni MRT.
Because when we listen to children, we reimagine a world where no child is left behind.
70 YEARS BERSAMA MALAYSIA
Today, we continue to protect children and fight malnutrition, with renewed focus on mental health, future skills, climate action, and inclusion.
For 70 years, UNICEF has stood Bersama Malaysia – working with the government and partners to help every child survive, thrive and reach their full potential.
- 1948 - UNICEF began supporting Malaya with humanitarian aid after WWII, delivering milk to fight malnutrition and helping vaccinate over a million children against TB.
- 1950s-70s – We expanded to rural healthcare, maternal and child health, poverty reduction, education and clean water.
- 1980s – Malaysia joined the global GOBI push to reduce child deaths through Growth monitoring, Oral rehydration, Breastfeeding, and Immunization.
- 1990s – Malaysia’s ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1995 marked a turning point – from charity to rights. We’ve been helping make those rights real ever since.
- 2000s – We supported child-friendly laws like the Child Act 2001, trained frontline workers and developed tools to handle child abuse cases.
- 2010s – After major floods in 2014, we delivered life-saving aid and helped preschoolers return to school. We also raised awareness on online safety and inequality.
We can’t do it alone. Your continued support is the foundation behind every step forward we take for children. Want to see more milestones from our 70-year journey? Explore our story here.
CORPORATE PARTNERSHIP
When business backs children, big things happen. In 2024, our corporate partners showed what’s possible when compassion meets action. Thank you for believing in a world where every child has the chance to grow, learn and thrive.
Supports the Youth Environment Living Lab (YELL) initiative, empowering young people to take climate action.
Supports the Future Skills for All programme, helping equip students with digital and future-ready skills.
Supports the Iskandar Malaysia Ecolife Challenge, encouraging environmental awareness and sustainable habits among schoolchildren.
Providing vital flexible funding to protect and empower children wherever the need is greatest
CHILDREN IN EMERGENCIES
In every crisis, children suffer the most. From Gaza and Lebanon to many other emergencies around the world, UNICEF works around the clock to protect the youngest victims of conflict and disaster.
With your support, we delivered life-saving aid — clean water, health care, nutrition, protection, and hope — to children and families caught in crisis.
Reaching Gaza’s children with life-saving support
Gaza’s children are living through unimaginable horrors. Since October 2023, over 14,500 children have reportedly been killed. Thousands more have been injured, displaced, or orphaned.
You helped UNICEF stay on the ground — working through immense challenges to deliver critical, life-saving support:
- Clean water for drinking and daily use for 1.8 million people, including over 700,000 children.
- Humanitarian cash assistance for over 1 million people, including 502,000 children.
- Nutrition support for 1.4 million people, including high-energy food and supplements.
- Medical supplies for over 61,000 people in affected communities
Protecting children and families in Lebanon
Months of violence have turned childhood into a daily struggle for survival. Since late 2023, more than 300 children have reportedly been killed, and thousands more injured or forced from their homes.
Thanks to your generosity, urgent aid reached families in need, even in the hardest hit areas:
- 43 million litres of water for domestic use for 78,996 displaced people.
- Primary healthcare and vaccinations for close to 500,000 people, including 106,806 children.
- Education kits and psychosocial support for 117,660 displaced children.
- Disability support and therapy for 1,572 children in shelters.
TOP GLOBAL ACHIEVEMENTS
Around the world, your support made it possible for children to survive and thrive — even in the hardest-to-reach places. Here are some of the biggest milestones you made possible in 2024.
Over 1.5 billion polio vaccine doses were delivered to 87 countries, contributing to the reduction of global polio cases by nearly 25 per cent between 2023 and 2024.
Humanitarian assistance was delivered to millions of children across 448 emergencies in 104 countries.
102 countries implemented climate programmes (from 68 countries in 2022).
251 million children under 5 were reached with early detection services for wasting, and 9.3 million with treatment for severe wasting and other forms of severe acute malnutrition.
26 million out-of-school children and adolescents gained access to education, including 9 million in humanitarian settings and 3.7 million children on the move.
Over 18 million people gained access to basic sanitation services, more than 33 million to safe water, and over 21 million to basic hygiene services.
18.5 million parents and caregivers accessed UNICEF-supported parenting programmes (from 11.8 million in 2022).
Across 110 countries, 6.2 million children who experienced violence received health, social work, justice or law enforcement services, a 36 per cent increase from 2023.
Thank you for being a Wira untuk Kanak-kanak.
Your compassion is creating real, lasting change, helping children feel safe, valued and full of possibility.
The journey isn’t over, and with you by our side, we know there’s hope for every child.
