Send a message to world leaders: #YouPromised to get Syrian children into school

Just under a year ago, world leaders made a promise – to deliver the funding needed to get every Syrian refugee children into school.

Many children whose families fled the conflict are now in the education systems of Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan. Sadly, of the 1.7 million Syrian refugee children in those countries, 800,000 are still waiting for that promise to be kept.

Now they face the miserable prospect of many more months or even years of being kept out of school. Not only will they miss out on vital education that could help to shape their future, these children are at greater risk of falling prey to child labour, child marriage and exploitation.

That’s why the countries which made the promise at the Supporting Syria conference last February need to be reminded again of their pledge. 

Theirworld has been running the #YouPromised campaign to keep up the pressure on those countries that co-hosted the conference in London. Some of them will be among the G7 world leaders preparing to meet in May.

They have to put children at the top of the Syria crisis agenda. You can send them a message that promises to children should not be broken.

Safe schools are essential if children are to flourish, feel secure and achieve their full potential. 

One in four of the world’s school-age children – nearly 500 million – live in countries affected by humanitarian crises such as conflicts, natural disasters and disease outbreaks.

About 75 million children are either already missing out on their education, receiving poor quality schooling or at risk of dropping out of school altogether.

Theirworld launched the #YouPromised campaign in August 2016 as we published a report revealing a shocking $1 billion gap in the funding needed to get every Syrian refugee into school in Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan.

The report’s author’s, Kevin Watkins – then executive director of the Overseas Development Institute – said at the time: “This report raises the alarm that there is insufficient funding to get all Syrian children in school. 

“These children have lost their homes, their friends, their schools, their relatives. 

“Nowhere is the gap between pledge and delivery more damaging than in education. The international community has repeatedly restated a commitment to ensure there will be ‘No Lost Generation’ in Syria.”

We cannot turn our back on these children who have suffered so much already. It is time for world leaders to deliver on their promise. Help us to make sure they do.