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Education for health and well-being in emergencies: spotlight on sub-Saharan Africa
While all adolescents and young people need life-saving skills to prevent and respond to issues such as gender-based violence, unintended pregnancy or HIV, this is all the more true for those in emergency situations, when risks increase significantly.
As part of its work on education in emergencies, UNESCO launched on 10 October a series of webinars aimed at building capacity and fostering knowledge exchange on the critical topic of ‘Education for health and well-being in emergencies.’
Organized by UNESCO Dakar and the Section for Migration, Displacement, Emergencies and Education at UNESCO Headquarters, the first webinar brought together participants from 14 countries across sub-Saharan Africa, including national experts on education in emergencies (EIE).
The discussions centred on how education for health and well-being can be adapted to emergency contexts to ensure continued access to comprehensive education and information programmes, even when crisis strikes. Countries also shared national experiences and highlighted challenges and successes in integrating EiE frameworks into their education systems.
Success and challenges in sub-Saharan Africa
A key focus of the webinar was presentation of UNESCO’s Our Rights, Our Lives, Our Futures (O3) programme, which is now in its second phase. The programme aims to reduce HIV infections, early and unintended pregnancies, gender-based violence, and child marriages, while increasing school enrolment and completion rates across sub-Saharan Africa. It also supports countries in implementing comprehensive information and education programmes, equipping young people with the knowledge and skills to make informed decisions about their health, well-being, and social relationships. The O3 programme emphasizes the importance of building young people’s agency, teacher training, the use of digital tools, and ensuring accessibility to all youth, both in and out of school including those in humanitarian and crisis contexts.
Participants from Malawi, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Mali, and South Sudan shared their experiences on how ongoing crises have impacted their national education systems, focusing on the effects of conflict, displacement, and other emergencies. In each country, large displacement of populations has created significant disruptions, forcing many schools to close or relocate. It was reported that West and Central Africa has more than 7.5 million people who are displaced from six countries; Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Niger, Nigeria (3 States) and Cameroon, and approximately 80 percent of them are women and children, most of whom are excluded from life-saving comprehensive education and information programmes.
Governments are responding through alternative solutions such as community-based education, distance learning, and catch-up programs to ensure continued access to education for displaced populations. Discussions at the webinar also emphasized the importance of addressing health and well-being within the education sector during emergencies, with critical areas including mental health support, healthcare access for students and teachers and protection from violence. While some countries shared effective practices, such as embedding psychosocial support into daily school routines, challenges remain, particularly around resource limitations, shortages in trained personnel, and inter-ministerial coordination in crisis-affected areas.
Why education is vital in emergencies
The right to safe, quality and inclusive education must be upheld for people affected by conflicts, prolonged crises, forced displacement, natural disasters, and public health emergencies. As emphasized by UNESCO, education in emergencies goes beyond access to traditional education, and also encompasses protecting children and youth in dangerous environments, and offering physical, psychosocial, and cognitive support that can save lives and foster resilience in communities.
Approaches to education in emergencies should be grounded in global standards and frameworks, such as the INEE Minimum Standards for Preparedness, Response, and Recovery. These rights-based standards, inspired by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, aim to ensure that all children have access to safe, equitable, and continuous education, even in the most challenging circumstances. Safe learning spaces, psychosocial support, and the engagement of parents and communities are critical pillars for maintaining education continuity in emergencies.
This first webinar set the stage for further dialogue and collaboration. The next session will delve deeper into practical strategies for strengthening education systems in emergency settings. The goal remains clear: to unite forces and protect education, health and wellbeing for all, even in the most challenging of circumstances.