OMM Redaksiyası
United Nations education officials on Thursday urged governments and donors to step up support for children affected by conflicts and disasters, drawing attention to the devastating impact of the war in the Gaza Strip on access to education, according to the UN.
Gordon Brown, the UN special envoy for global education, said hundreds of millions of children worldwide were being denied education because of conflict, displacement and climate-related disasters.
“Instead of the world developing only some of the potential of some children in some countries, we must be determined to develop the potential of all children,” Brown told reporters at a UN briefing.
Education crisis in Gaza
Brown said hundreds of thousands of children in Gaza remained out of school, while tens of thousands of young children had no access to preschool education.
Maysa Jalbout, director of Education Cannot Wait (ECW), described as the first global fund dedicated to education in emergencies, announced $3 million in emergency funding for vulnerable children in Gaza. The support will include children with conflict-related injuries and disabilities.
The programme is expected to reach up to 13,000 children and will be implemented through local organisations.
Jalbout said Gaza had more child amputees per capita than anywhere else in the world, underscoring the severe impact of the conflict on children.
Support for children affected by disasters
ECW is also providing assistance in other crisis zones. In Nepal, where floods and landslides recently damaged or destroyed 29 schools, the organisation committed $1 million to help children return to education.
“School stops, protection disappears, and the future is put on hold,” Jalbout said, noting that although the crises in Gaza and Nepal were different, their consequences for children could be similar.
ECW is seeking $600 million in additional funding to support 10 million more children affected by crises worldwide.
