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Emergencies such as armed conflicts, climate disasters, public health emergencies, and economic shocks are increasing globally in frequency, complexity, and scale. Emergencies can occur simultaneously — for instance, when armed conflict breaks out in a context already grappling with climate hazards — often leading to compounded, protracted crises. Every emergency threatens the right to education, testing the resilience and preparedness of education systems.

According to the , education in emergencies (EiE) encompasses the provision of “quality learning opportunities for all ages in situations of crisis, including early childhood development, primary, secondary, non-formal, technical, vocational, higher and adult education. Education in emergencies provides physical, psychosocial, and cognitive protection that can sustain and save lives.” 

The concept goes beyond the notion of immediate emergency education response, which is a key component of EiE, also referring to the longer-term role which education plays in crises to recover from shocks and build future economic stability and development, offering a sense of normalcy, stability, and structure throughout crises and beyond. 

According to Education Cannot Wait,  are affected by crises and in urgent need of quality education support. It is estimated that 72 million of these children are out of school.

Some of the ways by which emergencies affect education, learners and educators, include: 

• Closure of educational institutions: Formal and non-formal educational institutions, including schools, universities, and technical and vocational education spaces, may be forced to close for reasons linked to safety, resource constraints, or broader societal disruption. They may be damaged or destroyed, including by targeted attacks in cases of armed conflict, or repurposed for military use, or as emergency shelters for crisis affected populations.
• Lack of alternative learning modalities: When physical learning spaces are affected, alternative learning modalities such as digital and distance learning may not be available due to a lack of infrastructure, resources, or capacity, or may not be inclusive or accessible to all learners.
• Impact on health, safety, and well-being: In crisis settings, students, teachers, and education personnel are exposed to heightened risks of abduction, harassment, injury, or death. School closures further jeopardize physical and mental well-being by cutting off access to essential health and nutrition services, including school meals— the only reliable source of nutrition in a day for many children.
• Psychological impacts: Learners, teachers, education personnel and wider affected communities may experience severe psychological and mental health impacts, affecting all aspects of their lives, including education.
• Funding and planning: Government and multilateral institutions may reduce and reallocate education funding to support other urgent humanitarian needs. Crises also hamper governments’ ability to plan ahead, which has longer term repercussions on the quality of education provision.

School closures heighten protection risks for children and young people, rendering them more vulnerable to being subjected to violence, exploitation, and recruitment into armed groups. These risks are especially pronounced for those already experiencing vulnerabilities or marginalization. 

During crises, pre-existing inequalities are exacerbated, placing girls and young women at particular risk of gender-based violence, including sexual exploitation and child, early, and forced marriage. They also face an increased risk of dropping out of school permanently, severely limiting their future opportunities.

Children and youth with disabilities encounter heightened protection risks and additional barriers to accessible and inclusive education, such as a lack of physical access to educational spaces and insufficient assistive devices and technology. For those displaced by emergencies, displacement introduces further obstacles to education in host communities, including socioeconomic, language, and cultural barriers.

UNESCO considers education an immediate and essential need in crisis situations, comparable to urgent food and health service provision in humanitarian response. Since 1950, the Organization has been committed to ensuring the right to education during emergencies, including for refugees, displaced populations, and their host communities. Education is a fundamental human right in all circumstances. In emergencies, it is life-sustaining. It restores normalcy and hope, imparts knowledge and lifesaving skills, and empowers children and young people to aspire to a brighter future. For children and youth in crisis contexts, education not only ensures continuity of learning but also provides protection from abuse and exploitation, stability and a pathway to a better future. The knowledge, skills, and support gained through education can enable people to survive crises, thrive in the aftermath, and contribute to a sustainable world. This is especially crucial for vulnerable groups, including girls, migrants, refugees, and people with disabilities.

As custodian of the  and the lead UN agency for Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG4): Quality Education, UNESCO leads efforts to help Members States achieve SDG 4, which aims to ‘ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.’ In line with its overarching goal to leave no one behind, SDG 4 stresses the importance of reaching crisis-affected populations, stating that in emergencies, education is ‘immediately protective, providing life-saving knowledge and skills and psychosocial support.’ It also promotes flexible learning pathways, acknowledging the non-linear nature of education during crises. 

At the 2024 Global Education Meeting (GEM), participants adopted the , signaling a renewed commitment to addressing urgent challenges in inclusion, equity, and sustainable financing to accelerate progress toward achieving SDG4, including for populations impacted by emergencies and crises.

UNESCO plays a critical role in education in emergencies globally, working with partners to ensure that education systems are prepared for crises, that they are protective, resilient and responsive when crisis strikes, and that they can be safe havens for students, teachers and education communities during emergencies and beyond. In recent years, 91�鶹������Ʒ���� implemented around 320 education in emergency initiatives across 133 countries, reaching 42.5 million people. 

���������䰿’s&�Բ�����;aligns with the Organization’s objective to mobilize education to transform lives, aiming to protect and prioritize education in times of crisis. Often, education responses in emergencies are fragmented across humanitarian and development actors. UNESCO is working to address this through bridging the triple nexus of humanitarian, development and peacebuilding approaches through both immediate and longer-term actions, as well as through coordination and advocacy. The UNESCO Recommendation on Education for Peace, Human Rights and Sustainable Development also underscores the importance of providing inclusive, equitable, and quality education for all, and ensuring educational continuity and resilience in crisis-affected contexts.

In addition, UNESCO’s work in EiE is guided by international human rights, humanitarian, and refugee law. These include key compacts and resolutions such as the , the , and , and normative frameworks, including the , the , and the . 

Immediate actions

Immediate actions include providing formal and informal, inclusive and quality educational opportunities for all, including refugee and displaced populations, enhancing distance and digital learning through capacity building and the provision of equipment, and addressing the trauma caused by emergences through mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS). This support is extended to learners, teachers, caregivers and communities, as needed. UNESCO also helps countries to address the lack of accurate, reliable and timely data which is of crucial importance in driving effective education action, including in emergencies. Additionally, UNESCO monitors damage to education infrastructure during crises and supports rebuilding efforts.

Long term actions 

Long-term actions focus on recovery and building the resilience of education systems through crisis-sensitive planning and curriculum development, aiming for safe, inclusive, and equitable education for all. UNESCO also works to prevent the collapse of education systems in protracted crises, partnering with other education stakeholders to provide joint financing and support. 

Coordination 

UNESCO actively participates in global, regional and national coordination mechanisms, which help to streamline EiE efforts and enhance their reach and efficacy. Globally, UNESCO is an active member of the , the , the , and the  During humanitarian response, UNESCO works through global and national  and directly with ministries of education in the field of planning and capacity-building. With the help of donors such as  and the , as well as Member States, UNESCO is able to implement emergency programmes on the ground, together with partners from the United Nations, non-governmental organizations and the private sector. 

Advocacy 

Within the framework of its mandate, UNESCO advocates for adherence to international laws and frameworks which pertain to the protection of education, including from attack and the military use of education facilities in armed conflict, as emphasized by  and the . Given the chronic UNESCO also advocates for the prioritization of education in emergencies and the allocation of sufficient funds and resources, including through leveraging the ‘’ launched by Member States and partners at the UN Secretary General’s Transforming Education Summit in 2022.