The
Initiative on Education in Situations of emergency
and Crisis
Background
Crisis, conflicts
and emergencies adversely affect education systems in many
ways:
Population displacement (at present estimated at 50 million
throughout the world);
45 to 95 per cent of classrooms neglected or damaged;
Teachers dispersed, killed or not working;
Offices, equipment, textbooks and supplies neglected or
destroyed;
Reduction in enrolment;
Diversion of educational resources to military or security
purposes;
Child soldiers, child-headed households, orphans;
Core values and social cohesion eroded, HIV/AIDS proliferation;
Conflict is strongly related to the level of human development
(60 per cent of low Human Development Index (HDI) and 24
per cent of medium HDI are conflict countries).
In situations
of crisis and emergencies, education is essential in order
to:
Re-establish a sense of normalcy and structure and build
self-esteem and hope for the future;
Provide protection against exploitation and harm, especially
for girls and adolescents;
Meet the psychosocial needs of children and adolescents
affected by trauma and displacement;
Disseminate key survival messages, such as landmine awareness,
conflict resolution and peace-building;
Sustain study skills and skills-building;
Promote reintegration, reconstruction and sustainable development.
Objectives
This EFA flagship
strives to:
Ensure that children and young people living in countries
affected by crisis and emergency have access to education,
recreation and related activities, helping meet their psychosocial
needs in the short and longer term.
Promote collaboration and effectiveness in education responses
during crisis and early reconstruction through communication,
resource sharing, and advocacy.
Activities
Actions and
activities are concentrated around two principal areas:
Communication
The Inter-Agency
Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE) creates forums
for communities, practitioners, researchers and experts
to share resources and information, identify the problems
and issues that directly affect education programmes, and
develop and share best practices.
Advocacy
At the international
level
INEE and its
members work collectively and independently to encourage
multilateral and bilateral agencies and donors to put more
resources into education for emergency programming, to make
it a humanitarian priority and to ensure post-crisis early
reconstruction response.
At the national
level
Other international
education policy frameworks and appropriate forums draw
attention to the need for increased response to education
needs of refugees, displaced populations and other populations
affected by conflict and crisis.
At the local
level
Organizations
work with communities and governments to ensure education
for all populations affected by crisis.
Partners
INEE, the inter-agency
vehicle, consists of over 570 individual members and over
85 organizational members. The steering group is comprised
of CARE USA, the International Save the Children Alliance,
the International Rescue Committee, the Norwegian Refugee
Council, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNICEF and the World Bank.
Contact Information
Mary
Mendenhall
Network
Coordinator
Inter-Agency Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE)
UNICEF - Education Section, Programme Division
3 U.N. Plaza, H-7A
New York, N.Y. 10017
Telephone: 1 212 326 7581
Fax: 1 212 326 7129
mmendenhall@unicef.org
coordinator@ineesite.org
INEE is an open network of UN agencies, NGOs, donors, practitioners,
researchers and individuals from affected populations working
together to ensure the right to education in emergencies
and post-crisis reconstruction. Join INEE: www.ineesite.org
