The United Nations Childrens Fund says it needs 300 million US dollars to fund its emergency education work in the Middle East and North Africa‚ this year alone.
Political upheaval and conflict across the region are preventing more than 13 million children from going to school‚ UNICEF said in a report released in Amman‚ Jordan‚ today.
“The hopes of a generation are at stake.
“Conflicts wipe out years of investment and achievements in education…
“Young minds distorted by hatred and fear will need extraordinary support to contribute fully to the development of societies built on social progress‚ tolerance and prosperity‚” the agency said.
The report‚ “Education under Fire‚” focuses on the impact of violence on schoolchildren and education systems in nine countries — Syria‚ Iraq‚ Lebanon‚ Jordan‚ Turkey‚ Yemen‚ the State of Palestine‚ Libya and Sudan.
In Syria‚ Iraq‚ Yemen and Libya alone‚ nearly 9‚000 schools are out of use because they have been damaged‚ destroyed‚ are being used to shelter displaced civilians or have been taken over by parties to the conflict‚ the agency said.
“Other factors include the fear that drives thousands of teachers to abandon their posts‚ or keeps parents from sending their children to school because of what might happen to them along the way – or at school itself.”
In Jordan‚ Lebanon and Turkey‚ more than 700‚000 Syrian refugee children are unable to attend school because the overburdened national education infrastructure cannot cope with the extra student load.
Elaborating on the Africa conflict‚ UNICEF said: In Libya‚ the escalation of violence since May 2014 has led to civilian casualties‚ considerable displacement‚ destruction of public infrastructure and the disruption of basic services including education. It is estimated that two million people‚ almost one-third of the total population‚ have been affected by the conflict. More than 434‚000 people are internally displaced.
“Less noticed but just as devastating for children has been the long-running conflict in Sudan. Currently‚ some 2.9 million people are estimated to have been displaced by the conflict.”
Peter Salama‚ Regional Director for UNICEF in the Middle East and North Africa‚ said: “The destructive impact of conflict is being felt by children right across the region. It’s not just the physical damage being done to schools‚ but the despair felt by a generation of schoolchildren who see their hopes and futures shattered”.
The report highlights a range of initiatives – including the use of self-learning and expanded learning spaces – that can help children learn even in the most desperate of circumstances. But it says that the funding such work receives is not commensurate with the burgeoning needs‚ despite the fact that children and parents caught up in conflict overwhelmingly identify education as their number one priority.
In addition‚ the report calls on the international community‚ host governments‚ policy makers‚ the private sector and other partners to expand informal education services and provide more support to national education systems in conflict-hit countries and host communities to expand learning spaces‚ recruit and train teachers and provide learning materials.
See the full report here:
http://www.unicef.org/mena/Education–Under–Fire.pdf
Heavily armed fighters in schools and bullet-ridden classrooms - How wars are depriving children of their education
The United Nations Childrens Fund says it needs 300 million US dollars to fund its emergency education work in the Middle East and North Africa‚ this year alone.
Political upheaval and conflict across the region are preventing more than 13 million children from going to school‚ UNICEF said in a report released in Amman‚ Jordan‚ today.
“The hopes of a generation are at stake.
“Conflicts wipe out years of investment and achievements in education…
“Young minds distorted by hatred and fear will need extraordinary support to contribute fully to the development of societies built on social progress‚ tolerance and prosperity‚” the agency said.
The report‚ “Education under Fire‚” focuses on the impact of violence on schoolchildren and education systems in nine countries — Syria‚ Iraq‚ Lebanon‚ Jordan‚ Turkey‚ Yemen‚ the State of Palestine‚ Libya and Sudan.
In Syria‚ Iraq‚ Yemen and Libya alone‚ nearly 9‚000 schools are out of use because they have been damaged‚ destroyed‚ are being used to shelter displaced civilians or have been taken over by parties to the conflict‚ the agency said.
“Other factors include the fear that drives thousands of teachers to abandon their posts‚ or keeps parents from sending their children to school because of what might happen to them along the way – or at school itself.”
In Jordan‚ Lebanon and Turkey‚ more than 700‚000 Syrian refugee children are unable to attend school because the overburdened national education infrastructure cannot cope with the extra student load.
Elaborating on the Africa conflict‚ UNICEF said: In Libya‚ the escalation of violence since May 2014 has led to civilian casualties‚ considerable displacement‚ destruction of public infrastructure and the disruption of basic services including education. It is estimated that two million people‚ almost one-third of the total population‚ have been affected by the conflict. More than 434‚000 people are internally displaced.
“Less noticed but just as devastating for children has been the long-running conflict in Sudan. Currently‚ some 2.9 million people are estimated to have been displaced by the conflict.”
Peter Salama‚ Regional Director for UNICEF in the Middle East and North Africa‚ said: “The destructive impact of conflict is being felt by children right across the region. It’s not just the physical damage being done to schools‚ but the despair felt by a generation of schoolchildren who see their hopes and futures shattered”.
The report highlights a range of initiatives – including the use of self-learning and expanded learning spaces – that can help children learn even in the most desperate of circumstances. But it says that the funding such work receives is not commensurate with the burgeoning needs‚ despite the fact that children and parents caught up in conflict overwhelmingly identify education as their number one priority.
In addition‚ the report calls on the international community‚ host governments‚ policy makers‚ the private sector and other partners to expand informal education services and provide more support to national education systems in conflict-hit countries and host communities to expand learning spaces‚ recruit and train teachers and provide learning materials.
See the full report here:
http://www.unicef.org/mena/Education–Under–Fire.pdf
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