on Education in Emergencies and Protracted Crises

Brussels, 18.5.2018
COM(2018) 304 final

1. A COMMITMENT TO SAFE, INCLUSIVE, AND QUALITY EDUCATION IN EMERGENCIES AND
   PROTRACTED CRISES IN EU EXTERNAL ACTION
   The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, in particular its Goal 4,1
   recognises the
   importance of quality education and training as an essential foundation in addressing major
   global challenges. In 2016, this was recognised at the World Humanitarian Summit with the
   launch of the Education Cannot Wait Platform2
   to transform the delivery of education in
   emergencies and protracted crises.
   The right to education is recognised by the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European
   Union3 which is addressed to the EU institutions as well as to the Member States when the
   latter implement EU law. It is essential for peaceful societal development4
   , economic growth
   and the realisation of individual potential. The Treaty on European Union expressly commits
   the EU to promote the protection of the rights of the child.5
   The right to quality and inclusive
   education, training and life-long learning is the first principle of the European Pillar of Social
   Rights.6 Children are assigned a special place in EU external action, anchored in children’s
   rights7
   and affirming that “progress in the condition of children is essential if we are to
   prevent state fragility and ensure long-term sustainable development, social cohesion,
   stability and human security at national, regional and global levels”.8
   Yet, the reality is that access to quality education is being denied to millions of children by
   increasingly protracted conflicts, forced displacement, violence, climate change and disasters.
   These are leaving uneducated, lost generations in their wake and are major root causes
   leading many to embark on perilous journeys to Europe9
   and other regions of the world,
   affecting their stability and development.
   Half of the world’s out-of-school children live in contexts affected by crisis and conflict and
   almost half of refugees of primary school age are out of school. This compels the EU to
   respond by using its range of instruments and approaches. The EU has significantly
   increased its support to education in emergencies and protracted crises worldwide in recent
   years, recognising that education is the most chronically underfunded sector in crises,
   accounting for less than 3 per cent of total global funding for humanitarian aid10. The EU has
   increased financing to education in emergencies and crises from 1 per cent of its
   humanitarian aid in 2015, to 8 per cent in 2018, with an aim to reach 10 per cent as of 2019.
   A large proportion of its 2014-2020 bilateral development assistance to education is allocated
   to fragile and crisis-affected countries. The EU is a leading donor to education in response to
2. the Syria regional crisis and is providing significant multilateral financing to global initiatives
3. addressing education needs in emergencies and crises.
4. mobilising global support for further action.

Current EU assistance to education in emergencies and protracted crises covers all levels of
education, working with governments, United Nations agencies, non-governmental
organisations, civil society, private sector actors, the Global Partnership for Education and
other stakeholders. Bilateral support and policy dialogue with governments is accompanied
by an array of initiatives to mitigate education disruption around the world, from the
establishment of temporary learning spaces to the development of distance learning
programmes for children who cannot reach school sites. For example, the EU has responded
to the education needs of Syrian children at scale, using bilateral development financing,
humanitarian aid, the EU Regional Trust Fund in Response to the Syrian Crisis and the
Facility for Refugees in Turkey.
In recent years, needs on the ground have grown significantly and new challenges have
emerged. While the scale of needs is beyond its resources, the EU has a role to play by
scaling up its responses, focusing on reaching those in greatest need of support12, and
mobilising global support for further action.