Education in Emergencies
Ensuring learning in crisis and building resilient education systems
Countries in the East Asia and Pacific region are among the most disaster-prone in the world. Children are especially affected, particularly the most vulnerable.
In countries affected by emergencies, children lose their loved ones and homes. They no longer have access to safe drinking water, health care and food. They lose safety and routine. And, without access to education, they risk losing their futures.
A lifeline
For children in emergencies, education is about more than the right to learn.
Schools protect children from the physical dangers around them. They provide children with lifesaving food, water, health care and hygiene supplies. And they offer psychosocial support, giving children stability and structure to help them cope with the trauma they have experienced. Parents and children affected by crisis consistently cite education as a top priority of the emergency response.
UNICEF advocates for and supports governments and non-government partners in the region to provide uninterrupted education for every child affected by humanitarian crises – especially girls, children with disabilities, internally displaced children, refugees and migrants.
We help children develop skills to cope with the trauma of crisis, and supply them with learning spaces that are safe, child-friendly and equipped with water and sanitation facilities. Our work builds capacity by training teachers, supplying learning materials and supporting governments to reduce the risk of disaster.
Creating climate resilient education systems
To strengthen education system’s readiness and resilience for future shocks, including extreme climate-related events and variability, UNICEF supports governments in developing climate-smart education frameworks, climate data integration into Education Management Information Systems (EMIS) and climate vulnerability analysis and adaptation planning that will be used to equip the countries in the region in the future sector analysis and planning processes.
Key interventions of our work in emergencies and climate change include:
- Support to emergency preparation and response as Global Education Cluster Co-lead
- Education system strengthening for disaster risk reduction (DRR)
- National stakeholders' capacity building for Education in Emergencies and DRR
- Generation and dissemination of evidence and good practices
- Awareness-raising on climate change
Through all we do, UNICEF strongly advocates for a child’s right to education and a protective learning environment, forging partnerships at the national, regional and global levels to safeguard learning in emergencies for every child.
