Education Cannot Wait commits $25 million for refugees in Uganda

Education Cannot Wait (ECW), the United Nations’ global fund for education in emergencies and protracted crises, has announced a $25 million commitment to assist refugee and host community children in Uganda’s education system.

The commitment, which boosts ECW’s funding in Uganda to more than $75 million, will expand the Multi-Year Resilience Programme, which is focused on access, quality of delivery, and the strengthening of systems supporting inclusion across Uganda’s education system. To be delivered by Save the Children and UNHCR, in partnership with the government of Uganda, the three-year program will support the inclusion of more than 122,000 refugees, addressing barriers to formal and non-formal quality education by building and rehabilitating schools and providing mental health and psychosocial support. In addition, the program aims to improve coordination and management of education services through partnerships with the government, civil society, UN agencies, donors, and other key stakeholders.

According to ECW, Uganda hosts more than 1.5 million refugees, 798,000 of them children. More than half of these children ages 3 to 5 are out of school, approximately 27 percent of girls and 19 percent of boys are left out of primary education, and fewer than 5 percent of girls and 10 percent of boys will make it into secondary school.

“I am thrilled to see the Education Cannot Wait fund extend its Multi-Year Resilience Programme in Uganda. This will provide the opportunity for quality, inclusive education to more than 122,000 refugee and host community children and strengthen the systems for sustainability,” said Matthew Crentsil, the UNHCR country representative for Uganda. “The program will not only bridge the gap in education but will also help to ensure the rights and pave the way to a bright future for thousands of Ugandan and refugee students.”

(Photo credit: Getty Images/Claudiad)