Media Contact: Brendan Daly (202.794.1580)

WASHINGTON, D.C. (July 13, 2015) — Save the Children and Save the Children Action Network (SCAN) welcome today’s official launch of the Global Financing Facility (GFF) in support of Every Woman Every Child by the World Bank Group and the governments of the United States, Canada and Norway at the Financing for Development Conference in Ethiopia. Leaders from around the world have gathered in Addis Ababa to discuss ways to finance the new Sustainable Development Goals, which are expected to be adopted by the United Nations in September to build and include further efforts to end preventable maternal and child deaths by 2030.

Save the Children leaders also commend the United States’ commitment to ending preventable child and maternal deaths and welcomes its announcement to contribute $50 million to the GFF.

“Achieving the ambitious goal of ending preventable maternal, newborn and child deaths currently under discussion as part of the crafting of the new Sustainable Development Goals will require increased investment from both domestic and international sources,” said Carolyn Miles, president and CEO of Save the Children. “The launch of the GFF and the additional contributions from the United States, complemented by increased bilateral assistance from the U.S. and other nations, is a significant step forward in narrowing the resource gap toward ending preventable maternal, newborn and child deaths within a generation.”

Mark Shriver, president of SCAN, said that this initiative has the potential to sustain, increase and improve domestic and development assistance investment for reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health.

“With the GFF, the United States now has an opportunity to lead an initiative to bring public and private dollars to an accelerated scale so that we can cut preventable deaths in half by 2030,” continued Shriver. “SCAN is leading an effort to bring this initiative to Congress for rapid enactment. Just as the U.S. made history and made a significant impact using The Global Fund, we can achieve similar results on global efforts to reduce and end the preventable deaths of mothers, children and newborns.”

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Save the Children Action Network is the political voice for kids. We believe that every child deserves the best start in life. That’s why we’re building bipartisan will and voter support to make sure every child in the U.S. has access to high-quality early learning and that no mother or child around the globe dies from a preventable disease or illness. By investing in kids and holding leaders accountable, we are helping kids from birth to age five survive and thrive.