Education is a basic human right, enshrined in the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child and the 1951 Refugee Convention. We provide displaced children, many of whom will have witnessed or experienced violence, hunger, isolation and other stressful situations, with a place of normality, and a route to employment and self sufficiency.
Close to 4 million refugee children are out of school – more than half of the 7.9 million school-age refugee children. Despite investments in primary education, the rise in forced displacement around the world, including refugees, and people displaced within their own borders – means there are significant gaps between refugees and their non-refugee peers when it comes to access to education. Education is fundamental in reducing girls’ vulnerability to exploitation, sexual and gender-based violence, teenage pregnancy and child marriage.
By its very nature, displacement disrupts children’s education because of the difficulties and dangers they face in reaching safety, accessing vital basic resources, acquiring new identity documents and helping their families in often vulnerable situations. Our Education and Advocacy Program (EAP) supports children, young girls, and institutions, and engages communities to drive action plans that influence decision-makers.
Education is the best tool for ending the cycle of poverty. It is not a luxury, it is a lifeline for children in crisis and gives them hope for a future and a reason to wake up every day. One of the pillar programs of the Foundation is Education and Advocacy with a tagline that states that Every Child has a Right toEducation. Our Project on Educational Access for Displaced Children (PEADIC) provides school supplies and fees for displaced children affected by conflict and disaster. We supply kids with exercise books, writing materials, school bags, school uniforms, school fees and other basic school needs.
Every child has a right to Education.
According to UNESCO data, 244 million children and youth are out of school worldwide and UNICEF reports an estimated 617 million children worldwide are unable to reach minimum proficiency levels in reading and mathematics due to disruption in education from armed conflict, natural disasters, health pandemics, and poverty.
The AF EAP works alongside local communities and youth organizations to reach the children and adolescents who remain excluded from their educational avenues. We believe that the youths are the experts in their own experience and are therefore critical allies in fighting discrimination, drugs, and other negative influences.
Advocating for the Future
Within the advocacy sector, the AF EAP engages local communities, children, youths, refugees, and community mentors to advocate for neighborhood improvements, policy change, and increased access to critical infrastructure. Our advocacy measures empower communities and constituents to assess their own environments, prioritize pressing problems, and develop and implement plans to advocate for necessary change from local decision-makers and politicians.
We work within national political, economic, and social structures to ensure policies and practices exist in compliance with international standards while working with refugee communities and key stakeholders to provide a space for their voices to be heard so that together we can create positive operational and structural change.
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