NEW YORK, OSLO, Norway and YAOUNDÉ, Cameroon, Dec. 2,
2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Over 700,000 children have been
impacted by school closures due to violence in the North-West and
South-West regions of Cameroon,
according to recent analysis by the United Nations humanitarian
arm, UNOCHA.
The Secretary General of the Norwegian Refugee Council,
Jan Egeland, and the Director of
Education Cannot Wait, Yasmine
Sherif, today called for an end to attacks on education in
Cameroon during their joint visit
to the country this week.
"This is among the most complex humanitarian crises in the world
today. Children and youth are having to flee their homes and
schools, are threatened with violence and kidnapping, and are being
forced into early childhood marriage and recruited into armed
groups," said Yasmine Sherif. "We
call for urgent support from donors to respond to this forgotten
crisis. We call for the respect of human rights and adherence to
the principles of international humanitarian law and the Safe
Schools Declaration - and for partners to redouble efforts so all
children and adolescents can get back to the safety, protection and
hope that quality learning environments provide."
Two out of three schools are closed in the North-West and
South-West regions of Cameroon,
according to UNOCHA. On 24 November, four children and one
teacher were killed in an attack in Ekondo Titi in Cameroon's South-West region.
A recent lockdown imposed by a non-state armed group, from 15
September to 2 October, limited access to basic services including
health and education. During the period, OCHA reported a series of
attacks in the North-West. Eight students were kidnapped, and a
girl's fingers were chopped off after she tried to attend school.
Five public school principals were also kidnapped, including one
who was killed.
During the lockdown all schools and community learning spaces
were closed, except for some schools in a few urban areas which
operated at less than 60 per cent capacity. About 200,000 people
did not receive food due to the interruption of humanitarian
activities.
The lockdown and insecurity have forced UN agencies and aid
organisations - including the Norwegian Refugee Council - to
temporarily suspend the delivery of lifesaving aid to people in
need in both the North-West and South-West regions.
"Putting a schoolbag on your back shouldn't make you a target.
Yet children here risk their lives every day just showing up for
school. Cameroon's education
mega-emergency needs international attention, not deadly silence by
the outside world," said Jan
Egeland. "Cameroon is one
of the world's most forgotten crises and has ranked in the top
two of the Norwegian Refugee Council's list of neglected
displacement crises three years in a row. Until the international
community steps up its support and diplomatic engagement, children
will continue to bear the brunt of the violence."
Nine out of ten regions of Cameroon continue to be impacted by one of
three complex humanitarian crises: the crisis in the North-West and
South-West, conflict in the Far North, and a refugee crisis
involving people who have fled the Central African Republic. Over one million
children need urgent education support because of these
combined crises.
To address these multiple emergencies, made even worse by
COVID-19 and climate change impacts, Education Cannot Wait (ECW) -
the United Nations global fund for education in emergencies and
protracted crises - is working closely with UN agencies, the
Norwegian Refugee Council and civil society education partners to
build a multi-year resilience programme in Cameroon. ECW is contributing US$25 million over three years and calls for
other donors to fill the gap which is estimated at US$50 million. When fully funded, the
programme will provide approximately 250,000 children and
adolescents with access to safe and protective learning
environments in the most-affected areas.
The programme builds on the impact from ECW's ongoing First
Emergency Response in Cameroon.
Announced in May, the investment is designed to ensure refugee
children fleeing from the Central African
Republic receive access to quality, protective learning
environments.
English | French
About Education Cannot Wait (ECW):
Education Cannot Wait (ECW) is the United Nations global fund
for education in emergencies and protracted crises. We support
quality education outcomes for refugee, internally displaced and
other crisis-affected girls and boys, so no one is left behind. ECW
works through the multilateral system to both increase the speed of
responses in crises and connect immediate relief and longer-term
interventions through multi-year programming.
On Twitter, please
follow: @EduCannotWait
@YasmineSherif1 @KentPage
About the Norwegian Refugee Council:
The Norwegian Refugee Council is an international humanitarian
organization helping people forced to flee. We work in new and
protracted crises across 35 countries. We have been working in
Cameroon since 2017. We assisted
over 340,000 people in 2020, including with education, food,
shelter and legal aid.
On Twitter, please follow:
@NRC_Egeland @NRC_Norway
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SOURCE Education Cannot Wait