Little one Rights’ Consultants Warn that Displaced Kids and Younger Folks Danger Being Wiped Out of the Schooling System – World
By Joyce Chimbi
NAIROBI, KENYA, July 27, 2021 (IPS) – Difficulties in accessing education for children and youth displaced from their homes were exposed today in a high-level virtual round table organized by UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, Education can’t wait to be convened (ECW) UK and Canada. The round table was an important moment planned as part of a two-day Global Education Summit that will begin tomorrow, July 28, 2021 in London. The summit is a critical global finance campaign by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Kenyan President Uhuru. Kenyatta is jointly organized to improve the availability and accessibility of quality education for all children. Against this background, the UN Special Envoy for Global Education, Gordon Brown, opened discussions on the particular vulnerability of refugees and internally displaced children and young people, as they are the most vulnerable population group in the world and are at an even greater risk of falling from the education system. “Instead of some children developing part of their potential in some countries around the world, all children in each country can develop their full potential,” he emphasized.
Studies by the UNHCR show that even displaced children who have access to education are hardly integrated into the further education systems of their host communities because they are offered alternative educational platforms through parallel systems. These are often characterized by a lack of qualified systems or certified tests and carry the risk that funding could be withdrawn. These are the issues that have been discussed extensively at the high level round table to ensure that displaced children do not fall out of the education system. The panel included leaders and child education and development experts with a wide range of expertise, including Secretary of State Wendy Morton – UK Parliament; Karina Gould, Minister for International Development, Canada; Yasmine Sherif, director of Education Cannot Wait (ECW); Raouf Mazou, Deputy High Commissioner for Operations, UNHCR; Stanislas Ouaro, Minister for Education and Literacy, Burkina Faso; Shafqat Mahmood, Minister of Education and Training, Pakistan; David Miliband, President and CEO, International Rescue Committee (IRC); J Lawrence Aber, Willner, professor of psychology and public order at NYU Steinhardt; and Jean Marie Ishimwe (Kenya), a representative for refugee youth. Morton and Miliband spoke of fears and concerns that the number of the world’s most vulnerable children has increased in unprecedented fashion with the spread of COVID-19. With 1,400 global participants signing up for the Round Table on High Level Education, Miliband reflects growing concern that holistic education, a lifeline for children, is still out of reach for most displaced children. Miliband cautioned, however, that even as the global community advocating adequate education for all children continues to grow, the gap between educational needs and availability continues to increase. Gordon, who also chairs the ECW High Level Steering Group, said that the ECW “is the global education fund to meet the needs of children affected by forced displacement as part of responding to refugees everywhere, and that approach begins a better road “. Designing contingency approaches for sustainability and equity. “Gould explained that every country must ensure that all children within their borders have access to education. She referred to the recently launched campaign” Canada together for learning “aimed at bringing all refugee children together Achieving education. “It is up to all of us to provide quality education and opportunities to all refugee children. Finding security shouldn’t limit their potential because refugee children have so much to offer the world community,” she said. Ishimwe, a Kenyan native Living Rwandan Refugee Youth Representative, said that while it seems impossible to provide holistic, tailored education to displaced children through global concerted efforts and opportunities through the ECW platform, it can be done. He praised Kenya’s efforts to bring refugee children into the education system record, and applause uded the teachers in Kenya for their efforts to address the special needs of refugee children. “Refugee children in Kenya, especially in urban areas, have access to basic education through free and compulsory primary education. However, refugee children have difficult access to further and tertiary education because it is not free and they cannot afford it. ”“, Ishimwe explained. “But even in cases where a refugee child has access to tertiary education through the limited scholarships available, refugees still do not have access to employment opportunities,” he added. Yasmine Sherif, director of ECW, criticized the fact that children are now dramatically overrepresented among refugees worldwide. United Nations estimates show that although children make up less than a third of the world’s population, by the end of 2020 of 82 million people forcibly displaced, 33 million were under 18 years old and another five million were young 18 to young 24 years old. “Overall, at least 48 percent of school-age refugees do not attend school. In addition, an estimated 38 percent of refugee learners do not attend primary school and 78 percent do not attend secondary school. We cannot achieve sustainable development if we have a population that has not gone to school, “said Sherif.
“The conflict is not being resolved in time so that displaced children and young people can go back to school in their home countries. This lack of safety leads to lifelong severe chronic stress and learning and development difficulties in displaced children, ”she warned. Sherif also warned that girls and learners with disabilities are the most marginalized and left behind, particularly at risk of dropping out of school and never returning. She said, therefore, that the needs of children and youth whose education has been disrupted by armed conflict, displacement, climate change-induced disasters and protracted crises need to be addressed urgently, efficiently and effectively. Sherif called for links with governments, humanitarian and development actors to enable a more cooperative and faster response to the educational needs of children and young people affected by crises. Summit attendees heard that the world’s most vulnerable children are being deprived of education and the long-term socio-economic opportunities that education offers. Overall, the round table provided a critical opportunity to reflect on the challenges displaced young people face, but also promising practices for overcoming barriers that displaced children face. According to experts, this is a crucial step towards a comprehensive and effective global response to the needs of displaced children and adolescents.
