Connecting to Learn in Lebanon

Young Syrian refugees access education amidst crises and COVID-19 through ECW-funded distance learning programmes.

By Education Cannot Wait

May 27^th, 2021

Refugee Syrian girls and boys, who have fled unthinkable violence and destruction in their home country, are now seeking education in Lebanon to build brighter tomorrows for themselves and their families.

Since 2011, Lebanon has seen about 1.7 million Syrians – many of them children and youth – cross into the country. Today, Lebanon hosts the largest per capita population of Syrian refugees in the world. This mass influx of people seeking safety and opportunity places additional pressure on already over-stretched and under-funded institutions.

It also adds to the pre-existing educational challenges faced by refugees, the host-community and Lebanese children.

These challenges have only multiplied as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Education Cannot Wait (ECW) is currently supporting online learning for marginalized children in Lebanon whose schools were closed because of the pandemic (some have since returned to blended-learning).

Through ECW funding, thousands of children were able to receive lessons at home. While issues remain to be addressed, as Director Yasmine Sherif and the ECW team heard during their December 2020 visit to Lebanon's children, the message has been overwhelmingly positive.

"I say to all children, hold on to your dreams." - Yasmine Sherif, ECW Director

Below: Click and navigate through the following collection of stories, gathered from young Syrian refugees during Education Cannot Wait’s Lebanon Mission, Dec. 2020. Read how Nadia, Azhar, Mona and Hussein – four children living on the frontlines of crises in Lebanon – view education:

NADIA'S STORY AZHAR'S STORY MONA'S STORY HUSSEIN'S STORY

(Read more about ECW's Lebanon Mission: Part 1 and Part 2)

Upon traveling to Lebanon, the Education Cannot Wait (ECW) delegation respected a full quarantine from 4-7 December, with testing, per COVID-19 protocols. Following testing and quarantine, strict adherence with WHO guidelines were followed throughout the mission, including the use of masks and social distancing.

Button Label

Learning, Growing, Thriving

Community-Based Learning Facilities, established by Save the Children and Humanity & Inclusion, promote disability-inclusive education for young refugees in Bangladesh

Read

Clearing the Way for Learning

An ECW-funded initiative delivered by Save the Children is removing barriers to education for Nada, a young refugee with a physical disability in Iraq.

Read

Learning to Lead

Human rights education programme empowers Sudanese refugee girls in Uganda to become advocates for their communities, part of an ECW-funded initiative.

Read

A School for Healing

Reparative education initiative helps children affected by conflict-related sexual violence rediscover confidence, connection and the joy of learning in Nigeria

Read

Fuel for Learning: Aschila’s Story

ECW-funded holistic education response, delivered by World Vision and partners, is helping displaced children regain hope, nutrition and access to learning in Ethiopia

Read

Displaced but Determined

Displaced children in Haiti, including Dieussika, are returning to learning through ECW-funded catch-up classes implemented by UNICEF and partners.

Read