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Lake Chad initiative creates green jobs for local communities

The BIOPALT Biosphere and Heritage of Lake Chad project has set itself an ambitious objective to enable local inhabitant to live and work peacefully on the shores of Lake Chad Launched in 2018 for a period of four years the project aims to take stock of the regions natural resources so that they can be managed more sustainably Pilot actions to restore various ecosystems and foster the development of a green economy will also be carried out

October 29, 2021

Modelling inundation to respond to tsunami threats: First training for the Pacific Islands takes place on the 10th anniversary of the 2009 Samoa tsunami

October 7, 2019

Interview: Seven questions to Clarisse Nomaye, Lawyer and Writer from Chad

Samoa moves forward with ST & I Policy

October 3, 2017

Op-Ed by Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO and Angelina Jolie, Special Envoy of UNHCR

Published in The Time magazine 26 March 2020 The COVID19 pandemic has caused a series of traumas that make each of us rethink the meaning of our humanity Efforts to slow the spread of the disease have demanded enormous sacrifices We have seen health care workers and others on the front lines put themselves at great risk without hesitation to protect all of us The decision to close schools is another significant sacrifice 87 of all the worlds students well over a billion and a half young people are now unable to attend class because of nationwide school closures in 165 countries As is so often the case with human nature when we are deprived of something its value becomes clear Education is about much more than just classroom learning For millions of children and youth schools are a lifeline of opportunity as well as a shield Classrooms offer protection or at least a reprieve from violence exploitation and other difficult circumstances In the US some 22 million children rely on school for the hot daily meal that stands between them and hunger In fragile countries school closures have the potential to be devastating and permanently derail childrens futures When schools shut down for more than a few weeks early marriages increase more children are recruited into militias sexual exploitation of girls and young women rises teenage pregnancies increase and child labor rises The converse is also true education significantly improves not only the life prospects of individuals but the stability and prosperity of whole societies Inequalities will only grow as days turn into weeks and weeks into months We see this most starkly in the global refugee population One in five refugees have been in displacement situations that have lasted 20 years or more more than the entire duration of a childs education Without urgent practical assistance some of the children left without schooling worldwide due to the coronavirus may never set foot in a classroom again We must find ways to try to ensure access to continuity of education for young people across the world recognizing the sheer scale of the challenge Today UNESCO is launching a new Global Education Coalition to galvanize the search for practical solutions We are urging international organizations civil society and private sector companies committed to responsible stewardship to participate The goal is to identify and share the best innovations to keep children learning during the pandemic and to help lay foundations for more inclusive and equitable approaches to education when the crisis subsides The main response to school closures is to turn to distance and online learning For a critical proportion of students schooling has suddenly come into the home and parents siblings caregivers family and close friends are finding themselves in the role of teacher alongside virtual instructors Many parents who are now working from home are also struggling to balance the demands of work with being a fulltime instructor These experiences remind us of the value of our teachers everyday work which many take for granted or too often criticize However not all young people are given the same remote learning opportunities Many households specifically in fragile countries lack the capacity technology infrastructure and financial resources to operate remote learning at scale Not all existing curricula are conceived to be taught remotely And the ability of parents to provide time and resources to facilitate learning at home varies hugely within and between countries These are formidable barriers The Global Coalition will strive to find ways to pool resources and expertise and channel free technology solutions and digital tools to those who need it We must speed up the ways we share experience and help the most vulnerable whether or not they have internet access Measures can be as sophisticated as national cloud platforms or as simple as radio programming and plain mobile applications that enable use offline using a mix of technology and community approaches depending on the local circumstances Vulnerable and disadvantaged children including girls the poor the disabled and displaced learners must be a particular priority They are the children most likely to miss out on learning or suffer a decline in their health and nutrition and learning development And they are most likely not to return to schools when these institutions reopen Education should also be protected from future austerity cuts Innovations are already occurring in response to school closures Peru is providing teaching material via TV and radio translated into 10 indigenous languages to help learners deal with isolation In Senegal the Ministry of National Education has launched the Apprendre à la maison learning from home initiative In the last few years scheme such as UNESCOs Qualifications Passport for Refugees and Vulnerable Migrants have been introduced to help displaced people gain recognized qualifications These are some of the many innovations we can build upon But this moment should be about more than just shortterm steps to mitigate disruption and save lives The COVID19 crisis is a wakeup call for the international community as a whole including the United Nations Even before the pandemic 258 million children and youth were out of school worldwide There have been so many missed opportunities in the past This is a defining moment to rethink the future of education and the transformation that could be achieved through universal access to highquality education Today we must rise up to the previously unthinkable challenge of providing learning without schools But we also have an opportunity to reimagine education of the future We must seize it http httpstimecom5810017coronavirusschoolclosingseducationunesco

Strong commitment for science as a pillar of sustainable development in Pacific Island States

UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova at President Idriss Deby Itno’s inauguration in Chad

Singapore, Creative City of Design, implements relief measures for artist and cultural practitioners

Singapore a UNESCO Creative City of Design is a modern cosmopolitan and bustling citystate where design plays a significant role in its urban development Its urban designs incorporate smart solutions to meet the needs of its citizens in terms of housing healthcare education and transportation amongst others In response to the global outbreak of COVID19 the Government of Singapore has committed a total of 599 billion SGD approximately 40 billion USD to support individuals businesses and industries particularly impacted by the crisis The relief measures also include a series of dedicated measures to support the arts and the culture sector In the field of design the DesignSingapore Council has adjusted its existing schemes to better sustain and provide appropriate assistance to designers and design enterprises affected by the pandemic Apart from financial aid and other subsidies the Council has also launched the initiative Good Design Research that encourages design practitioners to set up new systems and processes that are more sustainable and resilient against external shocks such as the COVID19 Designers are thus encouraged to research and experiment with new materials services and experiences that will help tackle such global issues To assist the artist and art organizations the National Arts Council NAC recently established the Digital Presentation Grant for the Arts a timelimited scheme aimed at supporting artists and arts organizations to present their work digitally during the COVID19 period Through this grant the NAC not only aims to create work opportunities for art practitioners but also develop industry capabilities in producing digital art content In addition a set of measures targeting freelance artists and selfemployed persons SEP have also been put in place For instance the SEP Income Relief Schema assists eligible freelance artists with three quarterly payouts of 3000 SGD approximatey 2000 USD in May July and October 2020 respectively In addition the SEP Training Support Scheme has also been enhanced and extended allowing freelancers to receive a training allowance while attending courses under the SkillsFuture Series a package of short online training programmes focusing on emerging skills for the future such as data analytics digital media or urban solutions To know more about the initiatives undertaken by Singapore to support artists and culture practitioners please click here httpswwwdesignsingaporeorgwhatwedoresourcescovid19supportschemeshtml httpswwwnacgovsgwhatwedosupportsustainingtheartsduringcovid19SustainingtheartsduringCOVID19html

Director-General deplores death of journalist Obed Nangbatna in Chad

UNESCO ICT Prize laureate from Singapore leading the way in bringing virtual learning in the classroom

Office for the Pacific States Cluster Office to

Asia and Pacific Regional Bureau for Education Cluster Office for

Mini documentary depicts the resilience of indigenous peoples in Lake Chad

In this minidocumentary Hindou Oumaru Ibrahim shares her experience growing up among the nomadic and seminomadic peoples of Lake Chad and how she raised her voice on world stage to defend the rights of indigenous peoples threatened by climate change