Japan contributes $6.5 million to support safe access to quality education for children in rural Damascus and Aleppo

Newswire

Damascus: The Government of Japan has contributed US$6.5 million to support scaling up the access of vulnerable children to safe learning facilities, via light rehabilitation, as well as enhanced education outcomes, through teacher training in the governorates of Aleppo and Rural Damascus in Syria.

The funding will ensure close to 24,000 children benefit from access to quality learning within a safe environment. This intervention also aims to reach some 5,000 teachers with professional education personnel training including life skills, positive classroom management as well as on inclusion of children with disabilities trainings.

“A decade into the conflict in Syria, children’s education, that has been devastated by a heavily damaged infrastructure and lack of sufficiently skilled educators, remains at risk,” said UNICEF Syria Representative Mr. Bo Viktor Nylund. “Access to inclusive quality education in a safe environment is every child’s basic right and continues to be a pressing need for children in Syria. We are grateful for the people and government of Japan for this contribution, enabling us to pave the way for children back to learning and support educators.”

“Japan remains committed to providing humanitarian assistance to support crisis-affected population in Syria, especially vulnerable groups including children, women, youth and persons with disabilities. We sincerely hope that our support will help alleviate suffering for as many Syrians as possible, and help them to weather the multiple and deepening challenges they are facing,” said Mr. Akira Endo, Special Coordinator for Syria and Charge d’Affaires of the Embassy of Japan in Syria.

Since 2017, the Government of Japan has provided more than US$72 million of funding in support to children and families in Syria through UNICEF’s interventions.