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	COVID-19 has upended the lives of children around the world by Global Coalition to End Child Poverty, agencies   Mar. 2020   COVID-19 has upended the lives of children around the world, by Henrietta Fore - UNICEF Executive Director   In just a few months, COVID-19 has upended the lives of children around the world. Hundreds of millions are not in school. Parents and caregivers have lost their jobs. Borders have been closed.   Children are the hidden victims of this pandemic. We're worried about its short and long-term impacts on their health, well-being, development, and prospects.   We're worried about their lack of access to water and hygiene services. As you know, washing hands with soap is critical in the fight against COVID-19. And yet, 40 per cent of the world's population - or 3 billion people - do not have a handwashing facility with water and soap at home.   Even worse, 16 per cent of healthcare facilities, or 1 in 6, do not have hygiene services. And over one-third of schools worldwide and half of schools in the least-developed countries have no place for children to wash their hands at all.   We're worried about their education. More than half of the world's students have been affected by nation-wide school closures in at least 120 countries.   We hope that most of these students will resume their learning as soon as the situation improves. However, we know from experience that for vulnerable children, the longer they stay away from school the less likely they are to return.   These closures are not only limiting access to learning, but to school nutrition, health programs, clean water and accurate information.   We have issued guidance, along with WHO and IFRC, to advise parents, teachers, school administrators and others on how to keep children learning while keeping them safe.   We're worried about children's protection. We know from previous health emergencies that children are at heightened risk of exploitation, violence and abuse when schools are closed, jobs are lost, and movement is restricted.   For example, school closures during the Ebola outbreak in West Africa from 2014 to 2016 resulted in spikes in child labor, neglect, sexual abuse and teenage pregnancies.   We're worried about their access to basic health services, including immunization and the treatment of childhood diseases. We cannot save a child from COVID-19, and then lose many to pneumonia, measles and cholera.   We're worried about their mental health. Children and young people are missing out on some of the best moments of their young lives - chatting with friends, participating in class, and enjoying sports. This increases anxiety and can cause changes in behavior.   We're particularly worried about the millions of children on the move or living through conflicts. For them, the consequences of this pandemic will be unlike any we have ever seen. These children live in overcrowded conditions, often in active war zones, with limited or non-existent access to health care. A family of six, eight, ten or 12 can be living in one room. Self-isolation and handwashing with soap will not be easy in such environments.   That's why funding the UN global humanitarian response plan for COVID-19 is so essential.   With support from the international community, we can, together, shore up preparedness and response plans in countries with weaker healthcare systems. We can ramp up access to proper handwashing and sanitation services.   We can expand our engagement with communities to provide the information they need to avoid contagion.   We can maintain a steady flow of personal protection equipment - such as gowns, masks, goggles and gloves - to support infection prevention and control while keeping our essential, hard-working health workers safe.   And we can continue working with governments to strengthen protection services, psychosocial support and remote learning opportunities for all the children, and particularly for the most vulnerable children.   http://www.unicef.org/press-releases/un-launches-global-humanitarian-response-plan-covid-19-pandemic http://www.unicef.org/coronavirus/agenda-for-action   Mar. 2020   New digital map shows terrible impact of COVID-19 on school meals around the world. (WFP)   A digital map showing how the COVID-19 pandemic is disrupting children's school meals has been launched by the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP).   The map Global Monitoring of School Meals during COVID-19 School Closures - provides daily on-screen updates on school closures and the number of children no longer receiving school meals as a result. As well as displaying global totals, the map shows how many children are affected in each country, with real-time data indicating both the scale of the challenges and the need for solutions.   According to latest data, more than 364 million schoolchildren are now missing out on school meals on which they depend. Partial or country-wide closures of schools have been reported in 48 countries where WFP implements school feeding programmes. This means that nearly 11 million children are no longer receiving WFP school meals and that number is set to rise in coming days and weeks.   'This map gives us a snapshot of the terrible toll that this virus is having on the well-being of millions of school children and their families across the globe', said Carmen Burbano, Director of WFP's School Meals Programme. 'We're working with partners, including UNICEF, to find solutions to ensure children continue receiving the support they so desperately need while schools remain closed during the pandemic'.   http://cdn.wfp.org/2020/school-feeding-map/   Mar. 2020   Coronavirus is a devastating blow to children in poverty, by Yolande Wright and Luke Harman. Save the Children International   Covid-19, the illness caused by the novel coronavirus, is now present in virtually every country on earth. Each at different stages of the pandemic, there is a sense of foreboding that for many, the worst is yet to come. As the number of cases in fragile contexts begins to rise, we are starting to see the impact this will have on the most vulnerable children in all communities across the world.   Whilst the coronavirus has so far resulted in less severe cases among children, it can decimate their lives in a different way. The physical distancing measures increasingly required to contain the virus mean parents are unable to work, as business as usual is rapidly grinding to a halt across the world.   Meanwhile traditional care providers - schools and nurseries have had to close. Millions of children living in vulnerable communities in countries all around the world will suffer from the far-reaching economic and social impacts of the measures needed to contain the pandemic.   To avoid lasting damage to their future, we must act now - rapidly scaling up support for children whose families income is insecure and provide the social protection they urgently need.   When families that are already dependent on casual, low paid, or unstable work, lose their jobs or are forced to isolate because of the Covid-19 outbreak, they have little to fall back on.   They have few savings, but often debts, and cannot afford to stockpile food and other necessities. A break in income can have devastating consequences. For families in poverty, missing work directly relates to missing meals, making it hard to comply with government and health advice.   Many children around the world, including those displaced by conflict, live in vulnerable conditions, including in camps, informal settlements and on the streets. For some, they will be taking care of younger children of relatives or will be relied upon to work, to bolster family incomes.   Many will not be in a position to isolate or distance themselves from others or comply with basic hygiene measures, including simply washing their hands. In many countries where there is no universal health care, the poorest are also unable to pay for testing or medical assessments, let alone treatment.   The health, wellbeing and learning outcomes of millions of children globally was supported before the crisis through free school meals.   With UNESCO reporting that 130 countries have already implemented nationwide closures affecting 1.4 billion children, and numbers are rising daily, there is an urgent need for alternative provision. For many children these meals must now be provided at home, by caregivers already desperate to find the money to pay for care and basic necessities.   Sadly, some homes are not always a safe haven, particularly in times of financial stress. For children living with domestic abuse and gender-based violence, or those that suffer abuse directly, staying home can be a risk in itself.   Girls are especially vulnerable and we know that when normal support services are not available, they are at greater risk of unwanted pregnancy and early or forced marriage.   Those of us who worked on the Ebola Crisis in West and Central Africa saw first-hand how quarantine can increase the risk of exploitation and abuse among poor children and how many children, particularly adolescent girls, will struggle to return to school when the crisis ends.   The poorest households - including those suddenly impoverished by this crisis - will need support to survive this shock, and ensure their most vulnerable family members - children, those with disabilities and the elderly are protected. They desperately need cash, and they need it now.   This is why governments urgently need to scale up income support now. Many countries have already taken actions to cope with this enormous challenge.   This is a global crisis and requiring unprecedented national and international response efforts to both stop the spread of the virus and its secondary devastation everywhere.   There is a need for a massive and rapid scale up, expanding existing schemes wherever practical and adding new ones. Of course, checks and balances are needed to protect the most vulnerable, manage risks, and ensure markets are functioning.   In fragile and conflict-affected states, or countries with less developed systems, there is a major role for charities, the UN and donors to support efforts to ensure the marginalised and deprived are protected.   The lessons from this crisis will be many and far-reaching. Governments are rapidly learning the value of having inclusive social protection systems in place, which have some ability to flex in times of crisis.   Strong systems that are shock-responsive will ensure that when another crisis hits - be it another virus, an economic recession, or a climate-related catastrophe - countries can respond efficiently and effectively to safeguard the most vulnerable in society, including children.   The Global Coalition to End Child Poverty, which Save the Children co-chair with UNICEF, aims to raise awareness about children living in poverty across the world. Governments must take immediate actions to help poor families survive this global pandemic.   But we believe that social protection measures to support vulnerable children must also continue after this crisis has passed if we are to achieve a world where all children can grow up free of poverty and deprivation.   http://www.endchildhoodpoverty.org/news-and-updates-1/2020/3/26/coronavirus-is-a-devastating-blow-to-children-in-poverty http://plan-international.org/news/2020-04-14-open-letter-leaders-must-protect-children-during-covid-19 http://www.savethechildren.net/blog/protecting-generation-covid-19-agenda-action http://www.savethechildren.net/news http://bit.ly/2VdfSSm http://www.endchildhoodpoverty.org/covid19 http://www.who.int/news-room/detail/03-04-2020-who-and-unicef-to-partner-on-pandemic-response-through-covid-19-solidarity-response-fund http://alliancecpha.org/en/series-of-child-protection-materials/protection-children-during-covid-19-pandemic http://www.unhcr.org/en-us/news/press/2020/4/5e9d4c044/covid-19-pandemic-continues-forcibly-displaced-children-need-support.html   * UN Policy brief: The impact of COVID-19 on Children: http://bit.ly/3cqD9ax Visit the related web page
	Save Our Future: Averting an Education Catastrophe for the World’s Children by UNESCO, Unicef, Education Cannot Wait, agencies   Oct. 2020   Save Our Future: Averting an Education Catastrophe for the World’s Children   Ninety percent of students in all countries and continents -- nearly 1.6 billion school children and youth -- had their education disrupted at the height of pandemic lockdowns, marking the greatest disruption of education in history.   With the catalytic impact education has across health, jobs, income growth, climate change, poverty reduction, and social justice, the next generation faces devastating consequences if this education emergency is not addressed.   Despite the dire and known social and economic impacts of this fast-growing education emergency, there is imminent risk that governments will deprioritize investments in education as they make short-term fiscal responses to the pandemic.   This means that low and lower-middle-income countries are facing an annual financing gap of about $200 billion.   If governments and development partners do not invest in education urgently, this crisis could turn into a catastrophe from which millions of children may never recover, particularly marginalized vulnerable children and adolescents, including refugees, girls, and children with disabilities.   90% of children in the world have had their education interrupted due to COVID-19. This means that vulnerable children are missing out not only on education but also on vital services such as nutrition and health.   These COVID-19 impacts are hitting an education system that was already in crisis: even before the pandemic more than half of 10-year-olds in low and middle-income countries were not learning to read a simple text.   A new briefing paper from the Save Our Future Global Coalition, issued as part of the Save Our Future campaign, highlights priority actions to deliver changes in the coming 6-24 months in order to avert an education catastrophe.   In light of the scale of the crisis, the paper focuses primarily on education from pre-primary to secondary and in particular on those children who are most left behind, including children who live in locations where the vast majority of children are not learning, as well as children from marginalized groups. It includes children who are out of school and those who are enrolled in school but learning very little.   Save Our Future: Averting an Education Catastrophe for the World’s Children recommends that governments and the international community commit to:   Protecting education budgets and targeting budgets to those left furthest behind, Fully financing education as a key part of the COVID recovery, Improving coordination and use of evidence to ensure education funding achieves maximum impact. The future of an entire generation is at stake.   In addition, governments should also: Prioritize safely reopening schools, resume delivering vital services such as health and nutrition to children, and protect the education workforce, Transform education – making it more inclusive, engaging, and adaptive so that it can act as the engine of sustainable development desperately needed.   Strengthen the education workforce so that teachers and other professionals are equipped to enable learning and well-being for all children. Focus education technology where it is proven to be effective and most equitable and avoid the risk that technology continues to exacerbate inequality.   This is a defining moment for the world’s children and young people. The opportunity to reimagine and reboot education must be seized in bold ways, developing a new vision for children in the decade ahead. This cannot wait.   http://www.educationcannotwait.org/save-our-future/ http://saveourfuture.world/ http://www.ei-ie.org/en/detail/16991/unesco-prioritises-post-covid-19-education http://en.unesco.org/news/unesco-warns-funding-gap-reach-sdg4-poorer-countries-risks-increasing-us-200-billion-annually http://unsdg.un.org/resources/policy-brief-education-during-covid-19-and-beyond http://undocs.org/A/HRC/44/39   July 2020   Deep budget cuts to education and rising poverty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic may force at least 9.7 million children out of school forever by the end of this year, with millions more falling behind in learning, Save the Children warns in a new report.   Girls are likely to be much worse affected than boys, with many forced into early marriage. As the impacts of the recession triggered by COVID-19 hits families, many children may be forced out of school and into labour markets.   In its report, Save the Children is calling for governments and donors to respond to this global education emergency by urgently investing in education as schools begin to reopen after months of lockdown.   The agency is also calling on commercial creditors to suspend debt repayments by low-income countries – a move that could free up $14bn for investment in education.   “It would be unconscionable to allow resources that are so desperately needed to keep alive the hope that comes with education to be diverted into debt repayments,” said Inger Ashing, CEO of Save the Children.   The agency calls for governments to use their budgets to ensure children have access to distance learning whilst lockdown measures remain; and to support children who have fallen behind.   The Save Our Education report reveals the devastating effects the COVID-19 outbreak is set to have on learning. In a mid-range budget scenario, the agency estimates that the recession will leave a shortfall of $77 billion in education spending in some of the poorest countries in the world over the next 18 months.   In a worst-case scenario, under which governments shift resources from education to other COVID-19 response areas, that figure could climb to an astonishing $192 billion by the end of 2021.   The impending budget crunch comes after lockdown measures saw a peak of 1.6 billion children out of school, globally.   Ms Ashing said: “Around 10 million children may never return to school – this is an unprecedented education emergency and governments must urgently invest in learning. Instead we are at risk of unparalleled budget cuts which will see existing inequality explode between the rich and the poor, and between boys and girls. We know the poorest, most marginalised children who were already the furthest behind have suffered the greatest loss, with no access to distance learning - or any kind of education – for half an academic year.”   Before the outbreak, 258 million children and adolescents were already out of school. A Vulnerability Index in the report shows that in 12 countries, mainly in West and Central Africa but also including Yemen and Afghanistan, children are at extremely high risk of not returning to school after the lockdowns lift – especially girls.   In another 28 countries children are at moderate or high risk of not going back to school and of the longer-term effects of widening inequalities. In total, Save the Children estimates that some 9.7 million children could be forced out of school by the end of this year.   Currently, more than 1 billion children are out of school due to the global pandemic. Aisha*, 15, from Ethiopia is one of them:   “Three months ago, things were very good for me. I was enjoying school in grade six. When we were in school, we used to play with our friends and learn. The school also used to provide us with a meal every day. Now after this virus, I can’t go to school, and I can’t see my friends. I miss my school and my friends so much.   “It has been nearly three months since schools were closed and like many of the children here, I spend most of my time looking after the livestock and I sometimes help my mother with household chores like cleaning and cooking.”   Many of the top-12 countries in the report’s index already have high out of school rates and a sharp divide in school attendance along wealth and gender lines. These factors are likely to be exacerbated by school closures, with girls and children from poverty-stricken families being hardest hit.   Children in these countries are also caught in a vicious cycle of risk: they face greater risks of being forced into child labour and, adolescent girls are especially at risk of gender-based violence, child marriage and teenage pregnancy, which increases the longer they are out of school.   The same risks directly impact their ability to return to school at all. Combined with the sharp decrease of education spending, the COVID-19 outbreak could be a cruel blow for millions of children.   In many countries, Save the Children has provided distance learning materials such as books and home learning kits to support learners during lockdown, working closely with governments and teachers to provide lessons and support through radio, television, phone, social media and messaging apps.   Despite the efforts of governments and organisations, over 500 million children had no access to distance learning, and many of the poorest children may not have literate parents who can help them. Having lost out on months of learning, many children will struggle to catch up, raising the likelihood of drop out.   Save the Children warns that school closures have meant much more than education loss for many children – taking away safe places where children can play with friends, have meals and access health services, including services for their mental health. Teachers are often front-line responders and protectors for children who might suffer from abuse at home. With school closures, these safeguards fall away.   Inger Ashing continued:   “If we allow this education crisis to unfold, the impact on children’s futures will be long lasting. The promise the world has made to ensure all children have access to a quality education by 2030, will be set back by years.”   “Governments should be putting the interests of children before the claims of creditors. Whether they live in a refugee camp in Syria, a conflict zone in Yemen, a crammed urban area, or remote rural village: all children have a right to learn, to develop, to build a better future than their parents might have had. Education is the basis for that, and we can’t afford to let COVID-19 get in the way.”   Save the Children urges governments and donors to ensure that out-of-school children have access to distance learning, and to protection services. Those who return to school should be able to do so in a safe and inclusive way, with access to school meals and health services. Learning assessments and catch up classes must be adapted so that children can make up for their lost learning.   To ensure this happens, Save the Children is calling for an increased funding of education, with $35 billion to be made available by the World Bank. National governments must make education a priority by producing and implementing COVID-19 education responses and recovery plans to ensure the most marginalised children are able to continue learning.   http://www.savethechildren.net/news/almost-10-million-children-may-never-return-school-following-covid-19-lockdown http://www.savethechildren.net/save-our-education-report/   * 275-Strong world leaders’ group warns of tragic ‘COVID generation’ - Millions of children hit as education faces $150 billion of cuts: http://bit.ly/2DWaE9d   July 2020   Saving Generation COVID, by Abiy Ahmed and Gordon Brown. (Education Cannot Wait)   The oft-repeated idea that COVID-19 is “the great equalizer” is a myth. There is no equality of suffering or equality of sacrifice during a pandemic that is disproportionately hurting the poorest and most vulnerable.   And while the health emergency has disproportionately harmed the elderly poor, the unprecedented education crisis caused by the pandemic is now hurting the poorest children hardest and creating a generation that will lose out on learning. Lockdowns and other social-distancing rules have forced schools all over the world to shut their doors, affecting a peak of nearly 1.6 billion children.   But while wealthier children have had access to alternatives, such as online learning, the poorest do not. The world’s least-advantaged children – for whom education offers the only escape route from poverty – have thus fallen further behind, placing the Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4) of ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education for all by 2030 even further out of reach.   Even before the pandemic, the world was falling short of this goal. Globally, nearly 260 million children were out of school, and 400 million dropped out after the age of 11. In some regions, such as rural Sub-Saharan Africa, few girls were completing secondary school, not least because of widespread child marriage.   Nearly 50 countries have no laws banning child marriage, and many more fail to enforce their bans. As a result, about 12 million school-age girls are forcibly married off each year.   When schools reopen, there is a good chance that many poor children will never return. Poverty is the biggest reason why children don’t attend school, and the economic repercussions of the COVID-19 crisis will far outlast lockdowns, especially for the poorest people.   The likely result is that more children will be pushed into the ranks of the 152 million school-age children forced to work, as 14 countries still have not ratified the International Labor Organization’s minimum-age convention. And even more girls will be forced into early marriage.   When the West African Ebola epidemic that started in 2014 closed schools in Sierra Leone, the number of 15-19-year-old-girls who were pregnant or already mothers nearly doubled, rising from 30% to 65%. Most of these girls never returned to school.   With the right policies in place, economies will start to recover, jobs will slowly be restored, and social-protection policies will ease the poverty of the unemployed. But there is little protection against the effects of a foregone education, which can last a lifetime.   As it stands, more than half the world’s children – nearly 900 million boys and girls – are unable to read a simple text by age 10. That is 900 million children who do not receive the knowledge and skills needed to improve their economic lot as adults. If we do nothing to help “Generation COVID” make up for lost time, that figure could easily approach one billion or more. When schools in Kashmir closed for 14 weeks in the aftermath of the devastating 2005 earthquake, the most affected children lost the equivalent of 1.5 years of learning.   As the recently published UNESCO Global Education Monitoring Report advises us, children who have fallen behind need the kind of catch-up programs that in Latin America have increased educational attainment by up to 18 months since the 1990s. But the needed support will cost money. Unless we bridge the gap in education funding, SDG4 will remain out of reach.   UNESCO estimates that before the COVID-19 crisis, 50 countries were failing to spend the recommended minimum of 4% of national income, or 15% of the public budget, on education. Inadequate funding from governments and donors has meant that many of the 30 million refugee and forcibly displaced children age out of education without ever setting foot in a classroom, despite the efforts of Education Cannot Wait and other groups.   Now, the pandemic is set to squeeze education budgets even further. As slower or negative growth undermines tax revenues, less money will be available for public services. When allocating limited funds, urgent lifesaving expenditure on health and social safety nets will take precedence, leaving education underfunded.   Likewise, intensifying fiscal pressure in developed countries will result in reductions in international development aid, including for education, which is already losing out to other priorities in the allocation of bilateral and multilateral aid. The World Bank now estimates that, over the next year, overall education spending in low- and middle-income countries could be $100-150 billion lower than previously planned.   This funding crisis will not resolve itself. The quickest way to free up resources for education is through debt relief. The 76 poorest countries must pay $106 billion in debt-service costs over the next two years. Creditors should forgive these payments, with a requirement that the money is reallocated to education, as well as health.   At the same time, multilateral financial institutions and regional development banks must increase their resources. The International Monetary Fund should issue $1.2 trillion in Special Drawing Rights (its global reserve asset), and channel these resources toward the countries that need them most.   The World Bank, for its part, should unlock more support by replenishing the International Development Association (or borrowing on the strength of it) for low-income countries, and by using guarantees and grants from willing aid donors, such as the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, which stand ready to unlock billions in extra finance for education in lower-middle-income countries through the International Finance Facility for Education.   In the next week, both NGOs and all international education organizations will begin “back to school” campaigns. Save Our Future, a new campaign launching in late July, advocates building back better, rather than restoring the pre-pandemic status quo. That means updating classrooms and transforming curricula, implementing effective technologies, and helping teachers offer personalized instruction.   Making schools safer (over 620 million children lack basic sanitation services at their schools, which particularly affects girls) and ensuring school meals (a lifeline for 370 million boys and girls) would also ease the effects of poverty and improve educational outcomes. Save the Children will add to this pressure with its own grassroots campaign focused on debt relief to pay for education.   But investing in schools is only part of the solution. In Sierra Leone, support networks for girls halved the dropout rate during the Ebola crisis. In Latin American, African, and Asian countries, conditional cash transfers have boosted school attendance. The latest Global Education Monitoring Report advocates implementing similar programs today.   Generation COVID has already suffered immensely. It is time for the international community to give children the opportunities they deserve. Even when faced with momentous challenges, we must remain committed to making ours the first generation in history in which every child is in school and learning. Both national governments and the international community must now step up collective efforts to achieve that goal.   http://www.educationcannotwait.org/saving-generation-covid/ http://www.educationcannotwait.org/the-situation/ http://inee.org/ http://www.alliancecpha.org/en http://www.educationcluster.net/ http://bit.ly/392bJHo http://en.unesco.org/covid19/educationresponse http://en.unesco.org/news/unesco-warns-funding-gap-reach-sdg4-poorer-countries-risks-increasing-us-200-billion-annually http://en.unesco.org/news/covid-19-threatens-set-aid-education-back-six-years-warns-unesco   http://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000374187 http://en.unesco.org/covid19 http://www.education-inequalities.org/ http://gemreportunesco.wordpress.com/ http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/COVID-19-and-education.aspx http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Education/SREducation/Pages/COVID19.aspx http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/Education/COVID19/SavetheChildren.pdf   http://www.ungei.org/news/index_6565.html http://en.unesco.org/news/rebuilding-new-normal-girls-education-amid-covid-19 http://en.unesco.org/news/covid-19-school-closures-around-world-will-hit-girls-hardest http://www.endchildhoodpoverty.org/news-and-updates-1/2020/7/2/girls-and-young-women-in-the-era-of-covid19-an-urgent-call-for-action   http://www.endchildhoodpoverty.org/news-and-updates-1/2020/5/27/covid-19-in-the-global-south-urgent-need-for-safety-nets-for-low-income-families-to-stem-an-increase-in-child-poverty http://www.endchildhoodpoverty.org/news/2020/5/1/global-webinar-impact-of-covid-19-on-child-poverty-in-africa-and-beyond http://www.endchildhoodpoverty.org/child-poverty-news-blogs   http://www.unicef-irc.org/covid19/ http://www.unicef.org/press-releases/2-5-schools-around-world-lacked-basic-handwashing-facilities-prior-covid-19-pandemic http://www.unicef.org/press-releases/covid-19-least-third-worlds-schoolchildren-unable-access-remote-learning-during http://cdn.wfp.org/2020/school-feeding-map/ http://features.unicef.org/state-of-the-worlds-children-2019-nutrition/ http://blogs.unicef.org/evidence-for-action/   http://www.ei-ie.org/en/detail/16858/edtech-pandemic-shock-new-ei-research-launched-on-covid-19-education-commercialisation http://www.ei-ie.org/en/detail_page/4654/privatization http://www.unite4education.org/ http://www.gi-escr.org/private-actors-social-services/education http://laureatesandleaders.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/JointStatement.pdf http://www.hrw.org/news/2020/04/09/covid-19-and-childrens-rights http://reliefweb.int/report/world/education-under-attack-2020   Mar. 2020   Coronavirus school closures mean over one billion children and youth are now shut out of classrooms   The pandemic has forced over 110 countries to shut down their education systems - on top of 258 million young people already not going to school in the long term.   More than 110 countries in every corner of the world have shut down schools and universities or are planning to close them to slow the spread of coronavirus.   The United Nations says 102 of them have nationwide closures that have impacted more than 849 million children and youth from pre-primary to higher education. Another 11 countries have localised shutdowns, which if extended would affect tens of millions more students.   To put those numbers in perspective, before coronavirus struck, all the conflicts, natural disasters, poverty and discrimination across the globe were keeping 258 million children and youth out of primary and secondary school. Add in the pandemic and the number whose education is currently being disrupted is now well over One Billion.   "The global scale and speed of the current educational disruption is unparalleled and, if prolonged, could threaten the right to education," said UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay.   The agency said the effects could include:   Interrupted learning. When schools close, children and youth are deprived of opportunities for growth and development. Under-privileged learners with fewer educational opportunities beyond school are the hardest hit.   Nutrition. Many students rely on free or discounted meals provided at schools for food and healthy nutrition.   Dropout rates. It is a challenge to ensure children and youth return and stay in school when schools reopen after closures. Dropout rates rise in protracted closures.   As the UN agency that is leading on the Sustainable Development Goal to deliver quality education for all, UNESCO is compiling the coronavirus statistics and providing urgent support to ensure that learning continues even when schools are shut.   The biggest schools shutdowns - Number of children affected from pre-primary to upper secondary   China 233 million, Indonesia 60.2m Pakistan 44.9m, Bangladesh 36.7m, Mexico 33m, Ethiopia 23.9m, Egypt 23.1m, Turkey 17.7m, Japan 16.5m, Iran 14.6m, Kenya 13.7m, South Africa 13.5m, France 12.9m, Thailand 12.9m, Germany 12.2m, Argentina 11m, Afghanistan 9.6m.   Countries with partial school closures include.. United States, Russia, India, United Kingdom, Brazil, Philippines, Canada. In these countries, school systems have been closed in certain areas and large cities most affected by coronavirus.   It announced the creation of a UNESCO-Covid19 Emergency Task Force that will support national responses and share digital and traditional methods of learning, with a focus on the most vulnerable countries. That included a global video conference last week attended by 73 countries and many education ministers.   'We are entering uncharted territory and working with countries to find hi-tech, low-tech and no-tech solutions to assure the continuity of learning', said Azoulay. 'As countries try to prepare their response, international cooperation is vital to share the most effective approaches and support students, teachers and families'.   She said that support must promote innovation and inclusion to ensure the most vulnerable are not left behind. A wider community of practice, including the private sector, will be established to enhance knowledge-sharing, peer learning and scaling up distance and open learning.   Theirworld has been campaigning for years for every child in the world to receive a quality education. We led calls for Education Cannot Wait - the world's first fund to deliver education in emergencies - to be set up in 2016.   Without education for prolonged periods, young people's childhoods may be lost to child labour, early marriage, recruitment by armed groups, exploitation and discrimination. A child who is out of school for more than a year is unlikely to return - and girls are 2.5 times more likely to drop out of school than boys.   Theirworld President Justin van Fleet said: During this unprecedented time, when health and safety is the top priority, we also need to ensure young people, especially the most vulnerable, do not stop learning.   High-tech and low-tech innovations, ranging from radio learning, games and distance learning, have been implemented in crises past and present. Governments should ensure that all young people have the continuity of an education as the consequences of a lost year of development and learning is far too high.   In India - one of the countries with partial school closures so far - education charities say they are worried about girls dropping out. Almost one in four girls leave school before puberty and the female literacy rate is 66% compared to 80% for men.   In Delhi, the closure coincides with the holiday period. If it extends beyond March 31, then parents may be involved in lessons and some classes could be moved online, said Shailendra Sharma, principal advisor at the directorate of education.   He added: "We recognise that in government schools, many students are first-generation learners, so parents may not be able to help much. Nor does every student have access to a smartphone or tablet. So there may be challenges if the shutdown lasts longer."   About 54% of the global population - or 4.1 billion people - use the internet. But only one in five people in the least developed countries are online, according to the International Telecommunication Union, the UN's internet and telecoms agency.   Lack of online learning opportunities isn't just a problem for the world's poorest countries. In the United States, as many as 12 million school-aged children live in homes without broadband access, according to a 2017 US Congress report. The Los Angeles school district estimates that half of its students don't have computers or tablets and one in four have no internet access at home.   The adverse impacts of school closures are difficult to overstate and many them extend beyond the education sector. UNESCO has compiled a short list of these impacts to help countries anticipate and mitigate problems. They include:   Interrupted learning: The disadvantages are disproportionate for under-privileged learners who tend to have fewer educational opportunities outside school.   Nutrition: Many children and youth rely on free or discounted school meals for healthy nutrition. When schools close, nutrition is compromized.   Protection: Schools provide safety for many children and youth and when they close, young people are more vulnerable and at risk.   Parents unprepared for distance and home schooling: When schools close, parents are often asked to facilitate the children's learning at home and can struggle to perform this task. This is especially true for parents with limited education and resources.   Unequal access to digital learning portals: Lack of access to technology or good internet connectivity is an obstacle to continued learning, especially for students from disadvantaged families.   Gaps in childcare: In the absence of alternative options, working parents often leave children alone when schools close and this can lead to risky behaviors, including increased peer pressure and substance abuse.   High economic costs: Working parents are more likely to miss work to take care of their children when schools close. This results in wage loss and decreased productivity.   Increased pressure on schools and school systems that remain open: Localized school closures place additional burden on schools as parents and officials redirect children to schools that are open.   Rise in dropout rates: It is a challenge to ensure children and youth return and stay in school when schools reopen, especially after protracted closures.   Social isolation: Schools are hubs of social activity and human interaction. When schools close, many children and youth miss out on social contact that is essential to learning and development.   Mar. 2020   Key messages and actions for coronavirus disease (COVID-19) prevention and control in schools - Guidance from UNICEF, the World Health Organization and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies   As of March 2020, the outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has been declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, and the virus has spread to many countries and territories. While COVID-19 continues to spread, it is important that communities take action to prevent further transmission, reduce the impacts of the outbreak and support control measures.   The protection of children and educational facilities is particularly important. Precautions are necessary to prevent the potential spread of COVID-19 in school settings. However, care must also be taken to avoid stigmatizing students and staff who may have been exposed to the virus. COVID-19 does not differentiate among borders, ethnicities, disability status, age or gender. Education settings should continue to be welcoming, respectful, inclusive and supportive environments to all.   Measures taken by schools can prevent the entry and spread of COVID-19 by students and staff who may have been exposed to the virus, while minimizing disruption and protecting students and staff from discrimination.   The purpose of this document is to provide clear and actionable guidance for safe operations through the prevention, early detection and control of COVID-19 in schools and other educational facilities. The guidance, while specific to countries that have already confirmed the transmission of COVID-19, is relevant in all other contexts.   Education can encourage students to become advocates for disease prevention and control at home, in school and in their community by talking to others about how to prevent the spread of viruses. Maintaining safe school operations or reopening schools after a closure requires many considerations but, if done well, can promote public health.   http://www.unicef.org/reports/key-messages-and-actions-coronavirus-disease-covid-19-prevention-and-control-schools http://bit.ly/2w6SYDV http://www.unicef.org/stories/novel-coronavirus-outbreak-what-parents-should-know http://theirworld.org/news/coronavirus-closes-schools-now-one-billion-missing-education http://en.unesco.org/news/half-worlds-student-population-not-attending-school-unesco-launches-global-coalition-accelerate http://en.unesco.org/themes/education-emergencies/coronavirus-school-closures http://www.savethechildren.net/news/covid-19-most-marginalised-children-will-bear-brunt-unprecedented-school-closures-around-world Visit the related web page
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