They use used tyres, bottles, stones and a piece of string as toys. For Bahati, they form a school bus, which she would like to board as a pupil one day. Pascal sees in them the home he and his mother lost due to the war. It is difficult to compare childhoods in Europe and the Democratic Republic of Congo, but the children’s dreams remain the same: safety, love, smiles.

With all this childhood creativity, it is shocking to think that they may be spending the next Children’s Day in their lives without a meal. Some of the children who come to the nutrition centre have not eaten for days.

Such young children are not yet thinking about health – their parents are fighting for it, begging us for help.

It is not only the armed conflict brewing around every corner that poses a threat, but also its economic consequences. Destroyed farmland, people fleeing their homes, the rising cost of food that has to be imported – no toy, not even the most beautiful toy in the world, can bring a smile to a child who is simply hungry. Malaria and tuberculosis do not wait their turn here. They mercilessly attack the most vulnerable children, who require intensive nutritional therapy.

We cannot change the whole world, but we can make sure that at least one child’s life is saved. In practice, we save more than 4,000 of them every year. Your Children’s Day donation today will save the life of a young patient tomorrow. Fund a therapeutic meal and offer the most beautiful gift!