UNICEF was created by the
United Nations General Assembly on 11 December 1946, to provide emergency food
and healthcare to children in countries that had been devastated by World War
II. The Polish physician Ludwik Rajchman is widely regarded as the founder of
UNICEF and served as its first chairman from 1946. In 1953, UNICEF's mandate was extended to
address the needs of children in the developing world and became a permanent
part of the United Nations System. At that time, the words
"international" and "emergency" were dropped from the
organization's name, making it simply the United Nations Children's Fund, or
popularly known as "UNICEF".