UNICEF, the United Nations Children’s Fund, has launched a cryptocurrency fund to support open source technology for children around the world, the organization announced on Wednesday.
The fund will be used “to receive, hold and disburse donations of Cryptocurrencies ” and will support two digital assets - Bitcoin and Ethereum.
Commenting on the newly launched fund, Henrietta Fore, executive director at UNICEF, said: “If digital economies and currencies have the potential to shape the lives of coming generations, it is important that we explore the opportunities they offer. That’s why the creation of our Cryptocurrency Fund is a significant and welcome step forward in humanitarian and development work.”
The inaugural amount received from a Blockchain giant
The Ethereum Foundation became the first contributor to the fund and already transferred 100 Ether, worth around $18,000, to the UNICEF crypto fund.
The proceeds of the fund will benefit three grantees of the UNICEF Innovation Fund – and a project coordinated by the GIGA initiative to connect schools across the world to the internet, the announcement detailed.
“The Ethereum Foundation is excited to demonstrate the power of what Ethereum and blockchain technology can do for communities around the world. Together with UNICEF, we're taking action with the Crypto fund to improve access to basic needs, rights, and resources,” Aya Miyaguchi, executive director of the Ethereum Foundation, added.
“We aim to support the research and development of the Ethereum platform and to grow the community of those that benefit from a technology that will better countless lives and industries in the years to come. We'd like to thank UNICEF and the UNICEF family of national committees for their leadership as we create real progress together.”
This came as a part of the organization’s push in the development of blockchain technology. Last year the non-profit invested $100,000 in six blockchain projects working on fields including healthcare and finance.
