Toronto, July 30, 2025 – Save the Children is honored to be one of 13 humanitarian organizations receiving support from The Slaight Family Foundation, which has announced a $13 million commitment to address urgent global needs amid growing cuts to foreign aid. 

This $1 million grant from The Slaight Family Foundation will strengthen Save the Children’s work across West and Central Africa to ensure adolescent girls have the knowledge, resources, and support to make informed decisions about their sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR). This emergency funding is critical to sustaining our operations as major government donors withdraw support for global SRHR programming. These cuts have placed immense strain on frontline organizations.  

The Foundation’s support will help fill urgent funding gaps, allowing us and our local partners to continue delivering healthcare, education, and community-based services, and to advocate for policy change at every level. With this timely investment, we can continue advancing gender equality and protecting the rights of girls in some of the world’s most under-resourced and overlooked regions. 

“This generous support from The Slaight Family Foundation comes at a time when critical sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) programs are being scaled back or eliminated altogether,” said Danny Glenwright, President and CEO at Save the Children. “Millions of girls are being left behind—married too young, forced out of school, and denied access to even the most basic health information and services.  

“This funding will allow Save the Children and our local partners—such as N’domakeh in Sierra Leone, which works to increase awareness among parents and caregivers about gender equality and adolescent sexual and reproductive health and rights—to continue delivering life-saving programming in some of the most underserved areas, while also working to shift the systems that hold girls back. It’s an investment not just in girls’ health, but in their leadership, their potential, and their futures.” 

Each of the 13 organizations supported by The Slaight Family Foundation is addressing a different area of humanitarian need—from food insecurity to displacement to healthcare. Save the Children’s focus on gender equality and SRHR will help close one of the most urgent and underfunded gaps—supporting adolescent girls across a region where these services are needed most. 

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About Save the Children 

Save the Children believes every child deserves a future. In Canada and around the world, we do whatever it takes – every day and in times of crisis – so children can fulfil their rights to a healthy start in life, the opportunity to learn and protection from harm. With over 100 years of experience, we are the world’s first and leading independent children’s organization – transforming lives and the future we share. 

About The Slaight Family Foundation  

The Slaight Family Foundation was established in 2008 by John Allan Slaight. Allan Slaight (1931-2021), known as Canada’s broadcast pioneer, was a leader in the music industry and a prominent Canadian philanthropist. The Foundation proactively supports charitable initiatives in the areas of healthcare, at-risk youth, international development, social services and culture. Allan’s son, Gary Slaight, oversees the foundation as President & CEO, The Slaight Family Foundation. 

 

 

Media Contact

For additional information please contact Julie Marshall, Senior Manager, Media:

437 770 9752

jmarshall@savethechildren.ca

About Save the Children

Save the Children believes every child deserves a future. In Canada and around the world, we give children a healthy start in life, the opportunity to learn and protection from harm. We do whatever it takes for children – every day and in times of crisis – transforming their lives and the future we share.