#USA #New York #Education Cannot Wait #GEM #Crises Education

Education Cannot Wait and GEM Advocate for Transparency in Educational Investments

In an increasingly complex world shaped by humanitarian crises, the role of education cannot be overstated. Recent findings from Education Cannot Wait (ECW) and the Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report have brought to light the pressing need for clearer, more cohesive data regarding investments in education, particularly in emergency and protracted crisis situations. As emergency contexts evolve, so too must the approach to educational funding. A joint policy paper titled "Funding for Education in Crises: Data in Distress" underscores the significance of harmonizing reporting systems to ensure greater transparency and coherence in educational investments worldwide.

The Call for Better Coordination

The report reveals that despite a firm acknowledgment of education's critical role in addressing escalating needs, many gaps remain in terms of tracking, coordination, and reporting on educational financing. This inconsistency leads to missed opportunities in strategically aligning resources and effective advocacy in the sector. Yasmine Sherif, Executive Director of ECW, emphasized, "As crises deepen and humanitarian aid dwindles, we must deliver assistance in smarter, more rapid, and localized ways. This begins with better data and more robust coordination to ensure no child is left behind, especially those in severe humanitarian crises."

The data presented by ECW indicates that the ongoing conflicts, climate crises, and forced displacements have become defining features of global crises, with humanitarian appeals averaging a duration of ten years. Intriguingly, prolonged crises accounted for a staggering 91% of these appeals. A significant paradigm shift is observed, where educational interventions increasingly blend humanitarian and developmental programs.

Fragmentation of Educational Funding

Currently, financing and tracking mechanisms for humanitarian and development education remain largely disconnected, each monitored through different systems with varying standards. This fragmentation inhibits strategic planning and coherent funding advocacy. The paper meticulously analyzed data from three primary global databases—the OECD’s Creditor Reporting System (CRS), the Financial Tracking Service (FTS) from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), and the International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI). The findings demonstrated that the current lack of integration substantially limits strategic opportunities.

Moreover, education ranks as one of the least funded sectors in humanitarian responses. The FTS cites that in 2024, only 29% of educational funding requests from humanitarian appeals were met, revealing a stark gap in resource allocation. Simultaneously, the CRS data indicate that developmental aid now comprises an ever-increasing share of funding for education in crisis settings—reaching 92% in 2023. However, this figure may be overstated due to the narrow definition of humanitarian aid used in the database.

Continuous Need for Funding

As crises intensify, the proportion of educational funding in emergencies has escalated from 9% in 2017 to 12% in 2023. For countries with humanitarian response plans in place for over three years, this proportion rose from 21% to 24%. However, despite these increases, low- and middle-income countries continue to face an annual financing gap of $100 billion to meet their educational goals. If existing trends persist without immediate action, it is estimated that by 2030, 300 million children will lack foundational skills in literacy and numeracy, with 84 million children completely out of school.

A Framework for Change

Both ECW and GEM advocate for unified reporting systems to improve the standards of educational finance monitoring. This approach will enable policymakers and educational stakeholders to make informed funding decisions bridging humanitarian aid and long-term development. By fostering cooperation among humanitarian and developmental partners, the goal is not only to increase transparency and coherence in the educational funding landscape but to also provide a more impactful and efficient response to the needs of children around the globe, especially those affected by crises.

Conclusion

Educators, policymakers, and funding bodies must embrace this call for improved data management in the educational sector, advocating for children and youth affected by ongoing crises. Only through sincere empathy, strategic planning, and collaborative efforts can we ensure that the educational needs of the most vulnerable are adequately addressed. Together, we can strive to ensure that education remains a priority amid adversity and uncertainty in our world today.