Photo courtesy of Muzafar Ali

Closure of Web Focus on Education in Emergencies

Closure of Web Focus on Education in Emergencies

The floods in Pakistan, the earthquakes in Haiti and Chile are all reminders that climate change is affecting our daily lives, and we cannot afford to be complacent about prevention of disaster and conflict. Although education in emergencies is increasingly recognized as a crucial component during a humanitarian response to a crisis, there are those who still believe that education is not important in a rapid onset emergency. Yet education has indeed proved to be life-saving and life-sustaining. It can provide critical health and nutrition information, offer ‘safe spaces’ for children living in danger zones, or support children to overcome the effects of physical and psychological trauma caused by disaster.

IIEP organized a 3 month ‘web focus’ on the topic of education in emergencies to advocate to the international community to sustain the momentum supporting education in emergencies. The impetus galvanized by the Interagency Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE) and the Global Education Cluster needs to be maintained. The focus (which included the IIEP Online Forum on Planning and preparedness for education in emergencies) brought to light several issues reflected in the updated Guidebook for planning education in emergencies and reconstruction. Some of these included:

By examining curricula control in Bosnia and Herzegovina, through to the funding crisis that has affected education in Somalia, the web focus went beyond the theory of Education in Emergencies and shared many enlightening case studies of emergency situations and crises response. These studies, as well as the related documentation posted online, aimed to convince readers that the powerful nature of the ‘education tool’ can actively support rapid recovery from a crisis and ensure strong foundations for reconstruction.

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