Education in Emergencies
In the aftermath of the 2015 Nepal Earthquakes, educational services were severely disrupted, creating a very difficult learning environment. Within the 14 most affected districts, the earthquakes impacted more than 80% of the schools and in excess of 16,000 classrooms were fully destroyed. Then, in mid-August 2017, Nepal experienced the heaviest recorded rainfall in the central and western regions, resulting in significant flooding in the Terai region, and severe landslides in the hill areas. Both of these natural disasters severely impacted the learning environment of more than one million students.
In emergency situations, girls and women, and especially those who are poor, marginalised or living with disabilities are more vulnerable and they suffer disproportionately. There is thus clearly a need to take suitable disaster preparedness actions to ensure a safe learning environment for all both during and immediately after natural disasters.
UNESCO plays an important role as it works with Member States and partners to strengthen the resilience of education systems and to intensify the delivery of education in crisis-affected contexts. The Kathmandu Office has provided technical assistance, capacity development and policy advice to the government authorities as part of both preparedness and response efforts. This assistance gives priority to crisis-sensitive policy and planning, data collection and management, training for education authorities for emergency response and supporting the integration of psychosocial support. UNESCO also focuses on training and professional development of teachers and administrators to enhance their capacity to respond to complex needs during and after crises, and to support conflict prevention and disaster risk reduction.
Working with the national authorities and other partners, UNESCO promotes the three pillars of comprehensive school safety: (1) safe learning facilities (including through assessment of school safety and the use of this data to guide investments in strengthening school safety), (2) school disaster management, and (3) risk reduction and resilience education.
UNESCO is an active member of the Nepal Education Cluster and is always involved in the response to resume educational activities immediately following recurring natural disasters in Nepal such as earthquakes and floods. In the aftermath of the 2015 Nepal Earthquakes, UNESCO was a key contributor to the Post Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA) and Post Disaster Recovery Framework (PDRF) for education.
Key Partners
Ministry of Education, Science and Technology; Department of Education; Non-Formal Education Centre; Curriculum Development Centre; National Centre for Educational Development; District Education Offices; Nepal National Commission for UNESCO; Nepal Education Cluster; Non-Government Organisations; Civil Society Organisations
Extra budgetary Project(s) Portfolio
- “Disseminating life-saving messages through schools in flood-affected areas”, with the support of Education Cannot Wait (ECW) Fund (2017 – 2018, ongoing)
Resources/Publications
- Life-saving skills for protection of school children during floods: 1. Self-Learning Material, and 2. Teacher Training Manual, UNESCO Kathmandu Office and National Centre for Educational Development, 2018 [pdf, in Nepali]
- Evaluation of UNESCO’s Role in Education in Emergencies and Protracted Crises: UNESCO Kathmandu Office’s Education Response to Natural Disaster in Nepal, Internal Oversight Service/UNESCO, September 2016 [PDF]
- Disaster Risk Reduction: An Introductory Manual (for Community Learning Centers), UNESCO Kathmandu Office & Shikharapur Community Learning Centre, 2015 [PDF, in Nepali]
- Toolkit on Disaster Risk Reduction and Management: (1) Handbook, (2) for Policy makers and Stakeholders, (3) for Teachers, (4) for Grade 1- 5 Students, (5) for Grade 6-10 Students, UNESCO Kathmandu Office & Curriculum Development Center, 2015 [PDF, in Nepali]
- Education in Emergencies: Self-learning Materials for Non-Formal Education Learners, UNESCO Office Kathmandu & Non-Formal Education Center, 2015 [PDF, in Nepali)
- Post-disaster Teaching Aid Material: Part 1 (Back to School, Psychosocial Support and School Safety) and Part 2 (School Safety and DRR in the School Curriculum), National Center for Educational Development, 2015 [PDF, in Nepali]
- Tanah: The Tsunami and Earthquake Fighter, Nepali version of the mobile application game that makes learning about disaster risk reduction actions interesting and engaging for people of all ages
- Towards A Learning Culture of Safety and Resilience: Technical Guidance for Integrating Disaster Risk Reduction in the School Curriculum, UNESCO & UNICEF, 2014 [PDF, in Nepali; and English]
- Disaster risk reduction in school curricula: case studies from thirty countries, UNESCO & UNICEF, 2012 [PDF, in Nepali; and English]
- INEE Minimum Standards for Education: Preparedness, Response, Recovery, INEE, 2010 [PDF, in Nepali; English]
- UNESCO Publications on Education in Emergencies
- UNESCO Resources on Education in Emergencies
Relevant Links
- UNESCO’s work on Education in emergencies: UNESCO Paris (global)
- Global Education Cluster and Nepal Education Cluster
- Inter-Agency Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE)
- Global Alliance for Disaster Risk Reduction and Resilience in the Education Sector (GADRRRES)
- Worldwide Initiative for Safe Schools
- International Day for Disaster Reduction, 13 October