The Syrian conflict started in March 2011, and has generated the world’s largest humanitarian crisis in recent years.

The situation in the country and the conditions for refugees in neighbouring countries continues to deteriorate.

Almost 12.2 million Syrians now need assistance, and 7.6 million of them are displaced inside their own country and half of the IDPs are children struggling to survive and cope with the crisis. .

In addition, more than 4 million have fled to neighbouring countries, a third of them school-aged children and youth between 5 and 17 years old.

An estimated 5.6 million Syrian children and youth inside Syria and in neighbouring countries are in need of education.

UNESCO has been active in responding to this crisis, particularly by assisting Syrian refugees and host communities in Iraq, Jordan, and Lebanon.

UNESCO’s response addresses humanitarian needs and longer-term development assistance, creating complementarity and synergy among these areas. The response is integrated into nationally-led response processes and is fully aligned with the Syria Strategic Response Plan 2015 (SRP) and the Regional Refugee and Resilience Plan 2015-2016 (3RP).

In the field of education, UNESCO’s response is focusing on youth education and empowerment, providing educational opportunities and enhancing quality of teaching and learning both in formal and non-formal settings for young people affected by the crisis in Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq.

Priority areas for UNESCO action inside Syria are teacher training in technical and vocational education, accelerated learning programmes, extra-curricular activities, and psycho-social support