UNESCO

These internally
displaced children
will now have
a chance to come
back to school.
They will attend
the new secondary
school at Baharka
Camp in Erbil
(Iraq), officially
opened by UNESCO
on 17 March 2015.
This is a major
milestone in the
Organization’s
efforts to provide
quality secondary
education to
children and
adolescents from
these vulnerable
communities.
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In October, the State of Kuwait made a major
contribution to support UNESCO education
initiatives in response to the Syria crisis in
Lebanon. (From left) Education specialist
Dr. Ibrahim Higazi, Deputy Ambassador of the
State of Kuwait in Lebanon Mr. Mohamed Al
Saoud Al-Waqyan, and Director of the UNESCO
Office in Beirut Dr. Hamed Al-Hammami at the
solemn handover ceremony in Beirut.
© UNESCO Beirut
© UNAMI - United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq
The great challenges in this region
include high levels of unemployment,
violence, criminality and extremism.
Building resilient education systems and
ensuring that young people can access
them can help to tip the balance in favour
of peace. The programme supports the
No Lost Generation (NLG) strategy, and
is an integral part of the nationally led
response processes.
UNESCO also celebrated the opening of
the newly constructed Baharka Secondary
School for internally displaced persons (IDPs)
at Baharka Camp in Erbil (Iraq). The school will
host up to 500 students and 20 teachers in two
shifts. This represents a major milestone in
UNESCO’s efforts to provide quality secondary
education to children and adolescents from IDP
communities, and ensure equal opportunities
for girls and boys. Axel Plathe, Director of
the UNESCO Office for Iraq, said: ‘The young
people in the Baharka camp are at risk of
losing everything. They want and need to
go to school, and we are glad that we can
provide them with this opportunity.’ Abdul
Aziz Satori, Director-General of Examination/
Representative of the Government of Iraq
Ministry of Education, said: ‘The Regional
Government of Kurdistan and the Ministry
of Education have opened their schools for
the youth and children of the IDP community
to enable them to continue their education
and help them restore a sense of normalcy
in their lives.’
The Government of Japan has pledged
US $3 million to help UNESCO implement
two education projects that will benefit
IDPs and Syrian refugees in Iraq, including
the Kurdistan region. Mr Plathe said:
‘The future of the youth in the region
depends on what we do today. Their access
to quality education is the cornerstone for
the reconstruction of Iraq.’ The project,
‘Expanding Secondary Education for Syrian
Refugees in Iraq,’ is focused on expanding
access to quality secondary education
for Syrian boys and girls living in and
outside camps in the Kurdistan region of
Iraq. The project, ‘Bridging Urgently the
Gaps in Secondary Schooling for Girls of
IDP Communities in Iraq,’ aims to bring
internally displaced girls back to school
and protect them from violence. Together
the projects will provide assistance and
education opportunities to 4,500 Syrian
refugees and 14,500 IDPs.
This picture taken by artist Mohammad Golchin
portrays girls studying outdoors in the Talesh
Mountains (Islamic Republic of Iran). It participated
in the 2015 Alfred Fried Photography Award,
presented by the Photographische Gesellschaft and
Edition Lammerhuber, with the support of UNESCO.
This award aims to present human efforts to live
together in peaceful coexistence.