“I come from Sudan where almost an entire population of school-age children – some 17 million children – have been out of school since the war began a year ago. I visited a hot, dusty UNICEF centre full of children who have fled the conflict. Many of the girls there told me they had lost everything. As their world crumbled, their message to me was crystal clear: ‘We want to go home and we want to go back to school’”. This was said today by Catherine Russell, UNICEF Executive Director, speaking at the meeting of Education Ministers – G7 Italy 2024 underway in Trieste and attended by representatives of delegations from many countries around the world. “I shared this story with you today because,” she explained, “despite the terrible adversity they have suffered, they still have hope – hope for their future and to return to school”. And as “a global community we are failing these girls and hundreds of millions of other children like them around the world”. “There are currently 250 million children out of school,” said the UNICEF representative, “an increase of 6 million since 2021. This includes 100 million children in Africa. “For a child, this is a tragedy; for a country, it is a generational catastrophe. The children of Sudan are not alone in their plight. Millions more in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Gaza, Haiti and other conflict zones are being denied their right to education. Here in Europe, too, children’s education has been disrupted, first by the Covid-19 pandemic and then by years of war in Ukraine. This global learning crisis affects us all.” “Education is critical,” said Russell, and as Education Ministers, “you know this better than anyone”: “Thank you for reflecting the principle of ‘leaving no one behind’ in your statement… for highlighting the importance of reaching the most vulnerable children, including children affected by disasters… by poverty… children living with disabilities… and especially girls.” The UNICEF director draws attention to the main challenges of girls who are “more likely to drop out of school and less likely to return after disruptions such as conflict and climate disasters” highlighting that these girls once “are abandoned to marriage, work or other forms of exploitation, it is very difficult – if not impossible – to bring them back to school”. UNICEF is “determined to ensure the right to education for these girls and for all children. We cannot allow them to be left behind”. For this reason, it is necessary to “improve the quality and impact of education”, “use innovation and technology to reach more children”: “we at UNICEF and others in this community know what needs to be done and we know how to do it with the support of your Governments and partners like the African Union, who are leading the way”. Hence the exhortation to support teachers with effective teaching materials and to “add your important voice to these efforts”.
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