The number of out-of-school children and youth increased by six million between 2021 and 2023, reaching a total of 250 million.
Qatar’s Education Above All Foundation and the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) signed a five-year agreement on Sunday aimed at providing more refugees and out-of-school children with access to education.
The Qatari entity announced the agreement following the success of a previous one that enrolled more than 1.6 million children across 14 countries in schools since 2012.
The signing took place between EAA’s CEO, Fahad Al Sulaiti, and UNHCR High Commissioner, Filippo Grandi, in Doha.
The initiative is set to help achieve the fourth Sustainable Development Goal, which aims to ensure equal, inclusive and quality education globally by 2030.
Speaking at the signing, Grandi noted that more than seven million refugee children globally are out of school.
“This is why the Education Above All Foundation’s ongoing commitment to education is so critical to ensure the right to education for all children forced to flee. Together, we are opening doors to new opportunities and brighter futures for refugee children,” he added.
Al Sulaiti echoed Grandi, saying that the cooperation between EAA and UNHCR “is a testament to the power of strong partnerships.”
“We have achieved remarkable results. Education knows no boundaries; it is key to unlocking potential and shaping brighter futures for all. Through our joint efforts, we are working to create a world where equality and opportunity in education are more readily available,” Al Sulaiti said.
EAA’s founder, Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, also welcomed the agreement during her meeting with Grandi on Sunday.
“I was also pleased to expand the existing strategic partnership with the agency, which has resulted in the enrollment of more than 1.6 million out-of-school children around the world,” Sheikha Moza said on X.
Sheikha Moza, who spearheaded educational reforms, established EAA in 2012, which has since provided a vital lifeline for students forced out of their classrooms globally due to crises and conflict.
EAA and UNHCR have shared a partnership for more than a decade, implementing policy changes in numerous countries while facilitating key programmes to promote enrollment in educational institutions.
The number of out-of-school children and youth increased by six million between 2021 and 2023, reaching a total of 250 million, according to UNESCO.
In the Middle East and North Africa, there are nearly 15 million out-of-school children, aged between five-to-14, according to UNICEF. At least 10 million others in the region are at risk of dropping out of school mainly due to conflict.
This figure has likely gone up amid the ongoing Israeli genocide in Gaza, which forced the population to suspend an entire academic year.
A joint report by UNICEF, Save the Children and Education Cluster on April 25 highlighted the destruction of Gaza’s educational system by Israel.
“In Gaza, 17 years of blockade combined with recurrent conflict have damaged and destroyed an already fragile education infrastructure: increasing pressure on education facilities, disrupting education provision, and impacting the psychosocial wellbeing of children and teachers,” the report said.
Since the beginning of the war on October 7, 2023, Israel directly hit 274 school buildings, representing 48.7 percent of Gaza’s school buildings, according to the report.
A satellite-derived analysis also found that at least 59 schools have been totally destroyed and 39 others were partially destroyed.
Israel also destroyed EAA’s Al-Fakhoora House, an educational facility in the south of Gaza, on October 10, 2023.
The building belonged to EAA’s Al Fakhoora programme, established in 2010 to honour the victims of prior Israeli bombardments of Gaza.
Its name was inspired by the Al-Fakhoura school in Jabalia, which Israel attacked on November 18, killing an estimated 200 displaced Palestinians sheltering inside the facility.
