UNICEF NZ is Banging the Drum for Children in the Pacific at the Newtown Festival in Wellington this Sunday (7 Mar).

Drummers from the Cook Island drumming group Tiare Akatoka will be at the UNICEF stall near the Newtown library, giving members of the public short drumming lessons and inviting them to bang the drum for children in the Pacific. At 2.30pm they will be performing outside the Salvation Army.

Children are extremely vulnerable to the effects of the global economic crisis and research coming out of the Pacific is already showing that job losses, cuts in social spending and a decline in remittances is leading to declining health and education standards of children. The increased poverty this creates is very difficult to reverse and will often continue through to the next generation. Many children have already had to leave school because of difficulties paying the school fees or to work to contribute to their family’s income.

Investment in children, even during an economic crisis, is essential for their future wellbeing. Let the children of the Pacific know that you care about them – come down to Newtown and Bang the Drum!