GENEVA (AN) — A decade of hard-won progress in providing education to refugee children is now under severe threat from significant cuts to humanitarian and development aid, according to a U.N. report.
The U.N. refugee agency's report on Tuesday highlights a dual reality. Despite notable strides, a rapidly expanding global refugee population and severe lack of resources jeopardize future gains.
Over the past decade, the number of refugees under UNHCR’s mandate more than doubled to 31 million this year; 41% were younger than 18. Each year, the agency estimates, over 330,000 children are born as refugees.
UNHCR's 10th annual Refugee Education Report shows a striking increase in tertiary education, with enrollment jumping to 9% from 7% last year. This progress keeps the agency on track to meet its goal of 15% by 2030.
However, the report notes the global refugee population is expanding faster than the capacity to provide education. As a result, 5.7 million of all 12.4 million school-aged refugee children remain out of school.
"Just as you can see refugees determined to learn no matter how adverse the conditions, you can also see the absence of education for too many children – ambitions thwarted, dreams dashed, curious minds with nothing to satisfy that curiosity," Filippo Grandi, who heads the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, wrote in the report's foreword.
"While we must celebrate the successes, the challenges only multiply."
Systemic barriers and learning gaps
The report identifies a widening gap in educational access. Refugee children face greater hurdles to schooling than children in host nations from low-income and conflict-affected communities.
The systemic barriers include legal status, language, unfamiliar curriculums, lack of recognition for prior learning, and financial hardship.
A mixed picture on gender parity emerges. While there have been modest increases in primary enrollment rates for girls, and some progress toward gender parity at the secondary level, the report says equal access to school for refugee girls and boys "remains elusive."
A key challenge is the persistent data gap on learning outcomes for forcibly displaced children. UNHCR says it is working to address this, noting that national exam pass rates in reporting nations were 81% for primary students, 72% for lower secondary, and 71% for upper secondary.
While gender differences were minimal, refugee boys showed slightly higher pass rates in primary and upper secondary levels, possibly due to pressure on girls in some households to leave school early.
Qualified teacher shortage in crisis
The biggest challenges are in the classroom. The report highlights a severe lack of qualified teachers.
In reporting nations, only 12% of teachers working with refugees are refugees themselves, which UNHCR views as a missed opportunity, since refugee teachers can offer a unique understanding of their students' experiences and cultural backgrounds.
On average, 64% of these teachers have basic qualifications, which directly impacts the quality of education provided to students. That has led to alarmingly high pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratios, with 148 students per qualified teacher in Ethiopia and nearly 300 in Congo.
UNHCR conducted several assessments. In Mauritania, 10% of fourth-graders and 25% of sixth-graders could read and understand a simple story. In Mexico, 60% of adolescents could read basic texts. Haitian children performed lower in literacy and numeracy, likely due to a language barrier.
UNHCR emphasized that providing a quality education is not just a form of protection, but also a cornerstone of long-term sustainable solutions, helping refugee students become self-reliant and contribute to their new communities.
