EAA with IIEP UNESCO showcase new online tools to support those delivering Education in Conflict
The tools are all available online at the Education4Resilience website (http://education4resilience.iiep.unesco.org/). They are designed to support better education planning, to offer flexible curriculum resources and share best practice. These tools fit into the wider aims of the PEIC program, which advocates to protect education and the right to education – at all levels of the education systems – in areas affected or threatened by crisis, insecurity or armed conflict. It focuses, in particular, on strengthening and enforcing international legal norms surrounding the safeguarding of schools, children and teachers in conflict.
The workshop brought together leading practitioners across the world, including representatives from Save the Children, UNICEF, UNESCO, GIZ, ECHO and the Red Cross/ICRC as well as leading researchers from centres of research and learning. Attendees were addressed by His Excellency Abdulrahman bin Mohammed Al-Khulaifi, Qatar’s Ambassador to Germany, as well as Suzanne Grant Lewis, Director at IIEP UNESCO, and Dean Brooks, Director INEE - Inter-Agency Network for Education in Emergencies.
The discussion focused on the need for better partnerships to support the millions of children whose schooling is interrupted by war, and whose future is made more uncertain by the failure to learn the skills and gain the knowledge needed to reach their full potential. Speaking on behalf of Education Above All Foundation’s PEIC program, Professor Maleiha Malik condemned the increase in attacks on schools in Syria and Iraq in recent months. She argued that the international community must strengthen the legal framework to hold those armed groups to account for targeting their attacks on schools, children and teachers.
HE Mr. Al-Khulaifi praised the work of Education Above All in supporting global education and making a concrete contribution towards achieving the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. In particular, he recognised and thanked PEIC for its role in making progress towards both SDG 4 (“Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all”) and SDG16 (“Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels”).
He said,
“The tools launched here today remind us yet again of the importance of education especially in times of military confrontation and social unrest. It is unfortunate that today we are surrounded by many areas of conflict as we see in Syria, Iraq, Libya, Yemen, and Palestine. School children of all ages are the primary victims of such upheaval.
“Education Above All and its three programs – PEIC, Educate A Child and Al Fakhoora – are driven by the belief that education is the driver of human development. Today, through its PEIC program and in collaboration with IIEP, EAA has supported the development of a guide to planning, resilience and social cohesion. The knowledge produced for the ‘Safety, Resilience and Social Cohesion’ website will provide information about educational planning and teaching methods that strengthen resilience in education systems and promote safety and social cohesion in areas affected by conflict, such as Syria.
“Qatar believes in the power of youth to reshape societies. This has enabled us to become a state with a big mission.
“I am incredibly proud of all that EAA has accomplished to date and look forward to its continued future successes”
