Education in crisis situations

GPE helps countries strengthen and rebuild their education systems during and after a crisis so that children don’t lose out on their education.

An estimated 222 million crisis-affected children and adolescents are in need of education support, and 78 million are out of school.

Nearly 40 million children a year have their education interrupted by disasters and subsequent disease outbreaks following extreme weather events.

During conflict, schools are often destroyed or become unsafe. Students are forced out of school, making them more vulnerable to violence, forced displacement, early marriage and forced labor. When displaced, children have no guarantee that they will be able to attend school when they arrive at a safer destination.

Ensuring that children have access to education during conflict and crises protects their rights, provides a sense of normalcy, and fosters resilience, inclusion and tolerance, supporting the long-term processes of recovery and peacebuilding.

GPE 2025 identifies support to countries affected by fragility and conflict as a key priority, in order to reach the children most in need of education support.

In crisis situations, GPE helps restart schooling fast while building stronger education systems for the long term.

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Yemen: Keeping education going amid conflict

Our results

106 million more children
enrolled in school in partner countries affected by fragility and conflict since 2002
$277 million
in accelerated funding to 21 countries to mitigate the impact of crises on children’s education as of June 2022
69% of children
completed primary school in partner countries affected by fragility and conflict in 2020 compared to 66% in 2013
$435 million
unlocked in 2022 in partner countries affected by fragility and conflict through the GPE Multiplier and GPE Match

Sources

Publications

Factsheet: Education for refugee children
Factsheet: Supporting countries affected by fragility and conflict
List of GPE partner countries affected by fragility and conflict
Operational framework for effective support in fragile and conflict-affected contexts

GPE in action

GPE supports governments to prepare for, respond to, and recover from crises through technical and financial support to sustain children’s education primarily through national education systems.

In contexts where it is not feasible to work with governments, GPE protects the education system from collapse by supporting elements of the system closest to children and schools, so that learning can continue.

GPE promotes alignment between humanitarian and development actors, working closely with Education Cannot Wait, UNHCR, Education Clusters and other partners, by supporting the inclusion of emergency actors in national planning processes and local education groups. GPE helps facilitate dialogue among these actors to improve linkages and joint planning and avoid fragmentation in planning and financing.

Flexible and accelerated funding: Partner countries experiencing humanitarian crises can request accelerated funding from GPE up to 20% of their maximum allocation, with an approval in as little as 8 weeks. The funds are used based on the education cluster needs assessment and agreed by the local education group and the education cluster. Activities can include temporary shelters, school meals and school supplies, as well as classroom construction, teacher payments and school grants.

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Transitional education planning: GPE provides financial and technical support through the system capacity grant to help partner countries establish a medium-term transitional education plan during a period of crisis. This plan forms the basis for a coordinated approach by identifying priority actions to maintain progress toward ensuring the right to education and meeting longer-term educational goals.

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Operational framework for effective support in countries affected by fragility and conflict: Under this policy, GPE is able to redirect resources to priority activities arising from an emergency.

These mechanisms ensure that GPE funding to the education sector does not stop when emergencies strike and that partners can work together in identifying the most pressing needs and the best use of the funds.

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