Education is a human right, a public good and a public responsibility. The United Nations General Assembly proclaims 24 January as International Day of Education to highlight the importance of education. UNESCO, the "United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization", today, calls to invest in people, prioritize education.
The organization highlights that, today, 244 million children and youth are out of school and 771 million adults are illiterate. Without inclusive and equitable quality education and opportunities for lifelong learning for all, it’s impossible to break the cycle of poverty and achieve gender equality, that is leaving millions of children, youth and adults behind. Learning can empower people, preserve the planet, build shared prosperity, and foster peace.
Less than 40% of girls in sub-Saharan Africa complete lower secondary school and some four million children and youth refugees are out of school (UNESCO, 2023). A child who is out of school is more vulnerable to human traffickers and recruitment by militias and is at increased risk of early marriage, teen pregnancy, and child labor.
“We do not accept that their right to education is being violated and we engage as a global ADRA network to improve access to education and quality of education,” declared a press statement of ADRA Europe.
Today, together with UNESCO, ADRA Europe wants to emphasize the importance “to invest in people, prioritize education”. The power of educating every child is profound. If all girls completed secondary education, there would be 49% fewer child deaths, 64% fewer early marriages, and 59% fewer young pregnancies, and they would earn up to 45% more than a woman with no education.
ADRA calls on the global community to take all possible steps to ensure that all children can attend school, complete their education, and have a brighter future. ADRA’s call for every child, everywhere, to be in school is a recognition of the value and potential of each child.
The ADRA Europe Press Office’s statement explained: “All children are children of God – precious in His sight – and deserve the opportunity to live a life of dignity and purpose, free from exploitation and the shackles of poverty,”.
While ADRA is advocating for policy changes to be made, its European and worldwide network offices engage in practically promoting education.
In 2021, the generosity of ADRA’s supporters made it possible for ADRA to support more than 179 education projects around the world, impacting 547,816 lives. These projects, for example, integrated drop-out children and children with special needs into school, increased school attendance through school feeding in regions affected by hunger, improved basic and secondary education and schooling facilities, assisted countries with the development of curricula towards quality education for all, promoted vocational training for youth. Beyond that, ADRA’s projects addressing the roots of poverty enable parents to send their children to school.
To learn more about ADRA’s worldwide work in education, go here .
