UNESCO: global figure on out-of-school children hits 273m
By Our Reporters The number of children and young people out of school worldwide has climbed to 273 million, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has said.
By Our Reporters
The number of children and young people out of school worldwide has climbed to 273 million, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has said.
In this year’s Global Education Monitoring (GEM), the global education body stated that the number of out-of-school children and young people has risen for the seventh consecutive year.
The report revealed that one in six school-age children is excluded from education, while only two in three complete secondary school.
Progress has also slowed across most regions since 2015, the report said, with conflict and population growth among the main drivers.
“Progress in keeping children in school has slowed across almost every region,” the report stated.
It said sub-Saharan Africa is particularly affected in the sorry situation.
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In conflict zones, the situation is even more acute, with millions more children out of school than official figures capture.
In spite of these setbacks, UNESCO highlighted significant gains over the past two decades.
Global enrolment has risen sharply, with “more than 25 additional children accessing school every minute” since the year 2000.
The report also showed that some countries have made remarkable progress, slashing out-of-school rates and expanding access to all levels of education.
But the report cautioned that no single policy can tackle exclusion.
It urged tailored approaches and sustained investment to ensure all children can learn.
