Majority of Children in the North of Mali Out of School Due to Conflict
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Eileen Burke 203.216.0718 (M)
BAMAKO, Mali (October 4, 2012) — The vast majority of children in the North of Mali, especially those living outside of major cities, are out of school as a result of the conflict, Save the Children has found. Due to huge damage to school buildings and learning materials, a shortage of teachers and school closures, education is increasingly out of reach for children. Mounting insecurity also is forcing children to stay at home and drop out of school, just as the new school year gets underway.
As co-lead of the Education Cluster — a United Nations mechanism for coordinating emergency education assistance - Save the Children recently led an assessment in the occupied North. The assessment revealed serious obstacles to schooling — nearly three-quarters of the 25 local organizations surveyed in the North estimate that schools had been vandalized, looted or destroyed; a third estimate that schools were occupied by armed actors; half of the organizations estimate that the teachers had fled to the South and three-quarters of them estimate that schools reported supplies, furniture and teaching materials has been lost or damaged. As a result, a vast majority of schools are no longer open and for many children school is becoming an ever more distant memory.
Tom McCormack, Save the Children's Country Director of Mali, said: "The reports of the destruction of schools and the dropout rates of children are extremely concerning. The inability to go to school can have a serious and long-term impact on children's learning and development. We urgently need further funding to meet the significant needs of displaced children throughout Mali."
The Education Cluster has previously estimated that among the 300,000 students in the North, only 20% have displaced to the South or have sought refuge in neighboring countries. The 240,000 who remain in the North have little to no access to education, leaving children at risk of recruitment into armed groups. According to the UN, at least 175 children were recruited into armed groups between April and June this year. "I want to finish my education, despite the troubles in my country," says 16-year-old Agai who fled the insecurity in the North. "We came by car to Bamako — it took us two days. We had some food and water with us but I was scared. I am now staying with my aunt in Bamako so I can complete my education. I think it's important that I finish my education, even though there are troubles here. I really want to be a nurse and I want my country to be peaceful."
Recent flooding, resulting from parched land unable to absorb heavy rains quickly, has added yet another challenge for school children throughout Mali. The Education Cluster found that 290 schools across the country have been flooded, affecting some 58,000 children. In the Kayes region, where Save the Children teams are delivering life-saving assistance to families affected by the food crisis, 70 schools with an estimated 16,000 enrolled students have been impacted by the flooding. While the government reports most of the estimated 58,000 students have been able to begin the new school year as planned, many schools are operating under unsafe and difficult condition, including structural damage to classrooms and the loss of school supplies to the floods.
Despite the significant needs and warnings by international agencies about the impact of the conflict on education, funding remains critically low — just 4% of the pooled humanitarian appeal for education is funded. Save the Children has been working in Mali for 25 years and is rapidly scaling up its programs in response to the needs. With more funding, Save the Children could continue to deliver education and teaching supplies to the most vulnerable schools throughout Mali and build the capacity of teachers and school directors. Go to www.savethechildren.org/west-africa-hunger-1 to support Save the Children's efforts in West Africa.
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Editor's note: Following the coup d'etat in March this year, armed groups advanced South and now occupy the northern half of the country — an area the size of France. The political and social situation in Mali is extremely fragile and the UN estimates over 118,000 people have been forced to leave their homes as a result.