In the News

Multiple challenges are derailing efforts toward peace, stability and economic progress in Colombia. To address these challenges, Education Cannot Wait (ECW) and its strategic donor partners announced today a US$12 million Multi-Year Resilience Programme grant that will reach over 180,000 children and adolescents with access to quality education.

Múltiples desafíos están descarrilando los esfuerzos hacia la paz, la estabilidad y el progreso económico en Colombia. Para hacer frente a estos desafíos, Education Cannot Wait (ECW) y sus donantes estratégicos anunciaron hoy una subvención de 12 millones de dólares del Programa Multianual de Resiliencia que llegará a más de 180.000 niños, niñas y adolescentes con acceso a una educación de calidad.

El financiamiento total de ECW en Colombia ahora supera los US$28 millones. Para hacer frente a la crisis regional de refugiados en Venezuela, ECW ha invertido casi 70 millones de dólares hasta la fecha en Brasil, Colombia, Ecuador, Perú y Venezuela.

Las escuelas de la capital y de otros lugares en Haití se están desmoronando a medida que la violencia de las pandillas agudiza la pobreza y altera los servicios básicos del gobierno, mientras que el sistema de educación estatal enfrenta un déficit de 23 millones de dólares.

“El país necesita ayuda”, dijo Yasmine Sherif, directora general del fondo La Educación No Puede Esperar, de la ONU, para educación en casos de crisis y emergencias.

El Sherif anunció una subvención de 2.5 millones de dólares que se espera que ayude a casi 75,000 niños a través de transferencias de efectivo, programas de alimentación escolar y otras iniciativas.

Meanwhile, the UN-backed global fund to support education during emergencies and protracted crises has announced a $2 million grant to provide children in Gaza with access to quality learning opportunities and mental health services.

Education Cannot Wait (ECW) said war has kept some 625,000 children out of the classroom, and more than 370 schools have been damaged in attacks.

EWC Executive Director Yasmine Sherif said the children of Gaza continue to face unimaginable horrors. Although the grant “will enable the first steps in restoring mental health and learning services”, she said “it represents a drop in an ocean of needs in Gaza.”

The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) will expand its Better Learning Programme in Gaza, thanks to a $2 million First Emergency Response grant from Education Cannot Wait (ECW), the global fund for education in emergencies and protracted crises within the United Nations.

Yasmine Sherif, Executive Director of Education Cannot Wait, emphasised the dire situation:

"2.2 million Palestinians in Gaza are in the midst of an epic humanitarian catastrophe, facing inhumane conditions. There is unprecedented violence in modern times, starvation, famine and disease. Desperation and scarcity have led to a total breakdown of the lives of children and adolescents."

Since October 2023, 625,000 children enrolled in schools across Gaza have had no access to education, and more than 370 schools have sustained damage from attacks, according to the United Nations.

Now, in support of efforts to provide girls and boys with access to quality educational opportunities and mental health services, Education Cannot Wait (ECW) announced today a USD 2 million First Emergency Response Grant in Gaza.

“2.2 million Palestinians in Gaza are in the midst of an epic humanitarian catastrophe, facing inhumane conditions. There is unprecedented violence in modern times, starvation, famine and disease. Desperation and scarcity have led to a total breakdown of the lives of children and adolescents,” Yasmine Sherif, Executive Director of Education Cannot Wait, the Global Fund for Education in Emergencies and Protracted Crises within the United Nations, said when announcing the fast-acting 12-month grant.

Education Cannot Wait (ECW), an agency that promotes education worldwide, said war has kept some 625,000 children out of the classroom, and more than 370 schools have been damaged in attacks.

Furthermore, even before the start of the current hostilities last October, some three quarters of all children – roughly 800,000 – had already been identified as needing mental health and psychosocial support.

ECW Executive Director Yasmine Sherif said the children of Gaza continue to face unimaginable horrors.

Although the grant “will enable the first steps in restoring mental health and learning services”, she said “it represents a drop in an ocean of needs in Gaza.”

El sufrimiento humano en Gaza se ha cobrado unprecio sin precedentes en los niños y adolescentes que viven en medio de esta experiencia que destroza el alma y que ningún niño debería tener que soportar. En apoyo de los esfuerzos mundialespara proporcionar a las niñas y los niños acceso a oportunidades educativas de calidad y serviciosde salud mental, Education Cannot Wait (ECW) ha anunciado hoy una subvención de 2 millones dedólares para la Primera Respuesta de Emergencia en Gaza. La financiación total de ECW en el Estadode Palestina es de aproximadamente 36 millones de dólares.

El documento de Educo describe un panorama crítico donde conflictos armados, violencia, migración forzosa, desastres naturales y emergencias sanitarias interrumpen la educación de millones de estudiantes. Según datos de Education Cannot Wait (ECW), 78,2 millones de niños y niñas están fuera del sistema escolar, mientras que otros 119,6 millones no adquieren competencias básicas a pesar de estar escolarizados. Además, 24,2 millones de estudiantes, aunque se estima que aprenden a un nivel aceptable, aún sufren los efectos de estas crisis y necesitan apoyo específico.

Now, in support of efforts to provide girls and boys with access to quality educational opportunities and mental health services, Education Cannot Wait (ECW) announced today a USD 2 million First Emergency Response Grant in Gaza.

"2.2 million Palestinians in Gaza are in the midst of an epic humanitarian catastrophe, facing inhumane conditions. There is unprecedented violence in modern times, starvation, famine and disease. Desperation and scarcity have led to a total breakdown of the lives of children and adolescents,” Yasmine Sherif, Executive Director of Education Cannot Wait, the Global Fund for Education in Emergencies and Protracted Crises within the United Nations, said when announcing the fast-acting 12-month grant.

The Geneva Global Hub for Education in Emergencies (EiE Hub) is committed to broadening alliances to shape global debate, influence policymaking and achieve systemic change, creating the conditions to meet the educational needs of crisis-affected and displaced children and youth. Education Cannot Wait (ECW) announced today a US$600,000 grant to the EiE Hub to reinforce these efforts.

The 30-month Acceleration Facility grant will harness the EiE Hub's convening role and alliance of diverse members to strengthen global coordination and cross-sectoral collaboration. It will advance knowledge-sharing and inform policy-making through the production of critical data and global public goods on important themes – such as climate change, financing data, legal protection of education under International Humanitarian Law, and the implementation of the Safe Schools Declaration, in close cooperation with the International Committee of the Red Cross. The new partnership also aims to promote more inclusive global approaches by elevating the voices of crisis-affected populations in policy dialogues and enhancing their participation in decision-making processes.

Amidst the chaos of brutal wars, climate change-induced disasters and forced displacement, education serves as a stabilizing force, providing children and youth with initial healing, protection, and a sense of normalcy and hope amidst upheaval. Yet, despite its lifesaving and life-sustaining role, education in emergencies and protracted crises continues to be under-prioritized and underfunded.

The Geneva Global Hub for Education in Emergencies (EiE Hub) is committed to broadening alliances to shape global debate, influence policymaking and achieve systemic change, creating the conditions to meet the educational needs of crisis-affected and displaced children and youth. Education Cannot Wait (ECW) announced today a US$600,000 grant to the EiE Hub to reinforce these efforts.