UN Body Raise Hope World’s Most Vulnerable Children

Posted by Eric Ojo education, Latest Headlines, World News Thursday, January 26th, 2023

(AFRICAN EXAMINER) – Ahead of its High-Level Financing Conference which comes up in Geneva, Education Cannot Wait (ECW), has reassured that the event will impact positively on the plight of the vulnerable children across the world.

ECW is the United Nations global fund for education in emergencies and protracted crises. It works through the multilateral system to both increase the speed of responses in crises and connect immediate relief and longer-term interventions through multi-year programming.

The organization also works in close partnership with governments, public and private donors, UN agencies, civil society organizations, and other humanitarian and development aid actors to increase efficiencies and end siloed responses.

Around the world, 222 million children and adolescents impacted by conflict, climate change, displacement and other protracted crises are in need of urgent education support. Of those, more than 78 million are out of school altogether.

The conference, which is slated for 16 -17 of February, is co-hosted by Switzerland and ECW, in close collaboration with the Governments of Colombia, Germany, Niger, Norway and South Sudan, and will be open to the public as a live-streamed virtual event.

It will bring leaders together to fund education for children caught in emergencies and protracted crises and make good on commitments of the leaders to ensure every child, everywhere, is offered a quality education.

Moreover, it seeks to mobilize much-needed resources from donors, foundations and high-net-worth individuals to deliver on ECW’s four-year strategic plan, which will mobilize US$1.5 billion in additional resources to reach 20 million children and adolescents caught in some of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.

Director of ECW, Yasmine Sherif said: “This is our moment to stand up for the world’s most vulnerable children and youth and make good on our promise of ensuring quality education for all by 2030 as outlined in the Sustainable Development Goals.

“We can leave none behind. With our partners, we urge leaders everywhere to mobilize additional resources so Education Cannot Wait and our strategic partners can provide more girls and boys impacted by the horrors of war, displacement, climate change and other protracted crises with the safety and opportunity of a quality education”, she said.

Top-level representatives from UN agencies, civil society, governments and global youth representatives will also take part in the two-day event which expects over 400 delegates in-person and many more joining online globally.

The conference will kicks off with a high-level segment on 16 February inviting global leaders to position the education needs of crisis-impacted children at the top of the international agenda.

On day one, leaders will announce substantial new financial support to ECW to deliver on the Fund’s goal to reach a total of 20 million girls and boys over the next four years.

A notable Spotlight on Afghanistan – headlined by “I Am Malala” co-author Christina Lamb and Somaya Faruqi, Captain of the Afghan Girl’s Robotic Team, will provide a key advocacy moment on the first day of the conference, along with important sessions on A New Way of Working, Delivering with Humanitarian Speed and Development Depth, and Leaving No One Behind in Forced Displacement Situations.

Day two of the conference, on 17 February 2023, features a series of roundtable discussions aimed at sharing ideas, experiences and stories to transform the delivery of education in emergencies worldwide.

Founded in 2016, ECW has already reached close to 7 million children and adolescents with holistic education supports including upgrading learning spaces and ensuring children have quality learning materials, training and financially supporting teachers, and providing mental health services, school feeding and other whole-of-child solutions.

Notably, the Fund has already raised over US$1.1 billion from donors, the private sector and philanthropic foundations.