#222MillionDreams✨📚

Girl writing on blackboard
Join Education Cannot Wait’s #222MillionDreams✨📚 Campaign and help us turn the dreams of the world’s 222 million crisis-affected children and adolescents into reality!

UN Secretary-General Statement

"Education Cannot Wait. Help us place education within reach
of every child, everywhere. Help us keep 222 million dreams alive."

~UN Secretary-General António Guterres

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Girl and boy in Yemen going to school.

222 Million Children.

According to new global estimates, 222 million crisis-affected children and adolescents are in need of education support. This is a substantial increase from previous estimates, pointing to an alarming trend and a global education crisis. Access to a quality education in times of humanitarian crisis is not only the right of every child, it can also be both life-saving and life-sustaining.

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Girl swinging.

222 Million Dreams.

The #222MillionDreams✨📚 Campaign calls on world leaders to make substantive funding contributions to ECW. Millions of vulnerable girls and boys around the world await our collective action. From inside makeshift refugee settlements, damaged walls of classrooms and communities torn apart by war, these 222 million children are desperately holding on to the hope that education will allow them to realize their dreams.

Their Dreams
Girl in Bangladesh writes on the board.

222 Million Reasons.

ECW calls for urgent additional financing to reach the 222 million children left furthest behind in emergencies and protracted crises. With ECW’s High-Level Financing Conference on the horizon (February 2023), now is the time for world leaders to turn commitments into action by filling ECW’s $1.5 billion funding gap to ensure these girls and boys can access safe, inclusive quality education.

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ECW Director

“We must help realize the #222MillionDreams of these
crisis-affected children. This is a global call to action.”

~ECW Director Yasmine Sherif

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New Global Estimates

Featured Publications

Advocacy brief cover

Brief: "Global Estimates: Number of Crisis-affected Children and Adolescents in Need of Education Support"

Advocacy Brief/Factsheet
June 2022
Language:
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Global Estimates Study cover

Global Estimates: Number of Crisis-Affected Children and Adolescents in Need of Education Support

Reports & Evaluations
June 2022
Language:
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Cover of study: Crisis Affected Children and Adolescents in Need of Education Support: New Global Estimates and Thematic Deep Dives

Crisis-Affected Children and Adolescents in Need of Education Support: New Global Estimates and Thematic Deep Dives

Reports & Evaluations
June 2023
Language:
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The cover for the children's book, Zaya's Dream.

Zaya's Dream

Advocacy Brief/Factsheet
April 2024
Language:
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Cover of EiE Policy Brief from Spanish CSOs

Education in emergency situations: Guarantee the basic right to education especially in times of crisis and conflict

Strategies & Policies
November 2023
Language:
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Educo Cover

Education in Emergencies: A Lifeline (Funding Analysis for 2023)

Reports & Evaluations
February 2024
Language:
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Statements

Global Support for #222MillionDreams✨📚

António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations
António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations
Amina J. Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations
Amina J. Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations
The Rt. Hon. Gordon Brown, UN Special Envoy for Global Education and Chair of ECW High-Level Steering Group
The Rt. Hon. Gordon Brown, UN Special Envoy for Global Education and Chair of ECW High-Level Steering Group
Ignazio Cassis, President of the Swiss Confederation
Ignazio Cassis, President of the Swiss Confederation
Svenja Schulze
Anne Beathe Tvinnereim, Minister of International Development, Norway
Anne Beathe Tvinnereim, Minister of International Development, Norway
Filippo Grandi, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
Filippo Grandi, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
Harjit S. Sajjan, Minister of International Development, Canada
Harjit S. Sajjan, Minister of International Development, Canada
Patricia Danzi, Ambassador, Director General of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation
Patricia Danzi, Ambassador, Director General of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation
Girl standing in front of blackboard
Global Citizen

Upload Your Photo: 222 Million Dreams✨📚

222 million children's dreams are on hold due to preventable factors like climate crisis, war and conflict. Access to education is a right for every child, and in times of humanitarian crisis, it can be life-saving. Make a sign using one of the slogans suggested and upload a picture holding it

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Human Interest Stories

#MyDream is...

Hanifa's dream

Hanifa, Ethiopia

Hanifa dreams of becoming a water engineer so that she can solve the water shortages in her community. 

Read how ECW investments are helping to make Hanifa’s dream a reality!

https://www.educationcannotwait.org/news-stories/human-stories/conflict-comes-h…
Jai's dream

Jia, Bangladesh

Jia dreams of becoming a doctor and returning to Myanmar to live a happy life with his family.

Read how an ECW-supported programme is allowing Jia to return to school and realize his dreams!

https://www.educationcannotwait.org/news-stories/human-stories/hope-the-rohingya
Kawthar's dream

Kawthar, Syria

Kawthar dreams of becoming a fashion designer.

Read how an ECW-funded self-learning programme enabled Kawthar to catch up to her peers and reintegrate into regular school!

https://www.educationcannotwait.org/news-stories/human-stories/making-kawthars-…

Video Statements

Hear from ECW Supporters

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Make #222MillionDreams✨📚 Come True!