UNHCR's appeal: 700,000 children in the Sahel do not have access to education

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05 December 2020In the battered African region of the Sahel, an emergency among the emergencies is precisely that linked to education: due to the continuous and violent conflicts 4,000 schools have been closed or destroyed, preventing 700,000 children from accessing various levels of education and 20,000 teachers to work alongside them.

Covid-19 has further aggravated the scenario.

On the occasion of Christmas 2020, UNHCR launches a heartfelt appeal: "We need everyone's help to put hundreds of schools back into operation, to ensure that they are a safe place, away from the violence of armed groups, hunger and the pandemic. a decisive bet for the future of the entire region, of millions of children and young people who live there, of their families and communities, to build a future of peace ".

To guarantee access to school for refugee and displaced children in the Sahel, the campaign '

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starts today

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In the central Sahel, between Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, there are about 3.5 million internally displaced persons and refugees.

Six million people, including many children, live in conditions of extreme poverty and constant insecurity.

The causes add up: climate change heavily affects the entire region, causing devastating floods and famines.

It is estimated that

.

This situation further exacerbates the many conflicts that tear communities apart, generating widespread and endemic violence, with widespread conflicts between the various communities: farmers and ranchers, religious and fundamentalist groups, traffickers of human beings and natural resources (such as gold, uranium and gas ), arms dealers.

In the first 3 months of 2020 alone, UNHCR recorded 191 attacks, assaults and kidnappings by extremist armed groups, which caused 549 victims.

First target are the weakest: women, who are systematically raped, girls forced into early marriages, all children in general, who are snatched from families and educational institutions to be enlisted and exploited.

The killing of teachers, kidnapping of students, attacks on schools or the use of school buildings for military purposes have become common practice in the region.

Parents are afraid to send their children to school and teachers are terrified too.

For a refugee child, UNHCR notes, "not going to school means being helpless and exposed to dangers such as sexual and gender-based violence, labor exploitation, early marriage and pregnancy, forced recruitment into armed groups. Last but not least: not being able to continue in the path of education and training translates, over time, into the impossibility for refugee and displaced children to free themselves from the conditions of poverty, fragility and marginality in which they live. the most affected and vulnerable, as they are even more disadvantaged than their male peers in access to school and more exposed to risks of violence and exploitation ".

has made the situation in the Sahel even more serious: not only further school closures, even distance learning is extremely difficult in this region due to a lack of technological infrastructures and a shortage of devices.

'' A refugee child, even before the pandemic was twice as likely not to attend school as a non-refugee child - explains Chiara Cardoletti, UNHCR representative for Italy, the Holy See and San Marino - But it is in the Sahel that there is one of the most dramatic situations: we are talking about an area of ​​the world already bent by the effects of climate change, and tormented by incessant internal conflicts, which have also brought education to its knees.

Without this irreplaceable opportunity, the future of children and young people is compromised and the repercussions will be very serious, not for themselves but also and above all for their communities.

is working to ensure that every child and young adult has access to a safe school, but a great collective effort is needed, any help, big or small, is essential.

The objective of the 'Unleash its potential' campaign is to raise awareness of the crucial importance of education for the 700,000 children of the Sahel who do not have access to it and to raise funds to guarantee them the possibility of returning to school.

The appeal is addressed to everyone: every contribution, large or small, can make a difference.

From preventing Covid-19 to building new schools to distance learning, UNHCR is working tirelessly to ensure continuity in education for all displaced children.

But the global crisis remains underfunded and the needs are enormous.

Everyone can help and donate on https://dona.unhcr.it/campagna/libera-il-potenziale: every contribution, large or small, can make a difference.