Violent conflict is one of the greatest development challenges facing the international community and UNESCO’s member states. Beyond the immediate human suffering it causes, it is a source of poverty, inequality and economic stagnation. Children and education systems are often on the front line of violent conflict. Of the total number of primary school age children in the world who are not enrolled in school, over 40% live in countries affected by conflict, according to UNESCO’s 2011 Global Monitoring Report.
The Report was launched internationally on 1st March 2011. IIEP participated in the launch in London, United Kingdom. On 10 March, IIEP participated also at the GMR launch in the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs, The Hague, where the Institute launched the book On the Road to Resilience: Capacity Development with the Ministry of Education in Afghanistan (edited by Morten Sigsgaard) as an illustrative example of how educational planning can help systems in conflict recover.
IIEP involvement in the GMR
IIEP is deeply involved in Education in Emergencies issues and has thus contributed in many ways to the Report. IIEP Director Khalil Mahshi served as a member of the GMR Advisory Board. Lyndsay Bird, IIEP's programme specialist, was a member of the conflict advisory group, providing guidance and feedback to the Report team. Leonora MacEwen, Sulagna Choudhuri and Lyndsay Bird authored a background paper ‘Education sector planning: working to mitigate the risk of violent conflict’.
2011 GMR: make education a force for peace
The 2011 Global Monitoring Report examines the damaging consequences of conflict for the Education for All goals. It will set out an agenda for protecting the right to education during conflict, strengthening provision for children, youth and adults affected by conflict, and rebuilding education systems in countries emerging from conflict. The Report will also explore the role of inappropriate education policies in creating conditions for violent conflict. Drawing on experience from a range of countries, it will identify problems and set out solutions that can help make education a force for peace, social cohesion and human dignity.
>> Visit the EFA Global Monitoring Report website
IIEP publications
IIEP aims at strengthening capacities of national education institutions and officials, so that governments can respond to crises and fulfill their obligations to their citizens. One of these obligations is to ensure the continuity of education and the protection of students, teachers, and institutions before, during, and after any emergency. IIEP has developed for more than 10 years a wide range of resources to support national institutions.
