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Learning in the Eye of the Storm

Displaced children are rediscovering hope and opportunity through education following devastating floods in Somalia, with support from NRC and ECW

By Education Cannot Wait

October 29^th, 2025

Adapted Story from the Field. Special Contribution by NRC Somalia (Original).

“Floods took away my home. But education is giving me a new life again.” ~Sundus

In the front row of a sunny classroom sits a young girl in a bright pink jilbab. Even with all the activity around her, her eyes remain glued to her teacher at the front of the room – soaking in every word and every lesson.

For three years, returning to school had felt like a dream just out of Sundus’s grasp.

Somalia has been severely impacted by the effects of climate change, and children have not been spared. When Sundus was 7 years old, floodwaters swept through her village – swallowing her home, family farm and everything they had built. Her family were forced to flee and settled in the Towfiq Displacement Camp. Once proud farmers, they struggled to survive without their land or livestock. Survival was their focus; schooling was out of reach.

That changed when Sundus was 10 and the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), with funding from Education Cannot Wait (ECW) – the global fund for education in emergencies and protracted crises – established temporary learning spaces at Towfiq Camp and across Jowhar District.

The initiative is part of an ECW-supported First Emergency Response which responded to the ‘Super El Niño’ event that caused widespread flooding across Somalia at the end of 2023 – leading to mass displacement and the destruction of homes and schools. The grant supports lifesaving access to education, with aims to enhance preparedness in response to sudden onset emergencies and create an anticipatory action framework to protect schoolchildren from future climate hazards. Through the programme, NRC, in collaboration with WARDI and SOS Children Villages, has constructed new classrooms, rehabilitated others, and trained teachers to provide safe and inclusive learning environments for Sundus and thousands of other crisis-affected children.

Sundus at her school in Towfiq camp, Jowhar. © NRC/Abdulkadir Mohamed

From Floodwaters to the Classroom

At 10, Sundus has already faced more hardship than any child should.

Born in Marerey Village in Somalia’s Jowhar District, her childhood was filled with simple joys: school lessons, games with friends and helping her family tend their farm and livestock. A catastrophic flood changed all of that.

“I remember the water rushing into our house. My mother grabbed my hand, and we ran. We left everything. I also lost my books.”

When her family arrived at the Towfiq Displacement Camp, they joined nearly 17,000 others displaced by both armed conflict and the devastating climate disasters that have repeatedly struck the country.

The camp is crowded with limited food, scarce water and few health services. For three long years after arriving at Towfiq Camp, there was no school. The abrupt halt to education, which had been a staple in her life, left a deep void in Sundus’ days.

Before the floods, Sundus had loved learning.

“I liked going to school in the village. I loved drawing pictures on the board. My teacher used to say, ‘Sundus, you are clever.’”

Sundus writes on the blackboard during class. © NRC/Abdulkadir Mohamed

Girls and boys in the camp received a second chance to learn when NRC, through an ECW-funded programme, established a temporary learning space in Towfiq. The programme has already supported the construction of three new classrooms with latrines and rehabilitation of three others in Jowhar District. It also provides teacher training and incentives, learning materials, and mental health and psychosocial support – ensuring displaced children can access safe, quality education.

So far, more than 3,600 children have been reached – including Sundus, now proudly enrolled in first grade. Her teachers describe her as eager, curious and quick to raise her hand.

“When I registered for school, and got books and pencils, I felt so happy. I told my mother: Now I can be a student again.”

At school, Sundus has found more than lessons; she has found protection and hope.

“School keeps us safe. When I am in class, I don’t worry about anything else. I just think about learning.”

Her favorite subject is mathematics. “When the teacher asks questions, I try to answer. Sometimes I get it right, sometimes not – but I keep trying,” she says, her determination shining through.

“If I study, I can be anything. If I stop, I will lose everything. I don’t want to stop again.”

Sundus’ bustling classroom. © NRC/Abdulkadir Mohamed

Crises in Somalia

Somalia is grappling with one of the world’s most complex humanitarian crises. Decades of armed conflict, political instability and widespread poverty have left millions vulnerable. In recent years, the country has also found itself on the frontlines of the climate crisis.

Severe droughts have been followed by catastrophic floods, displacing hundreds of thousands and destroying homes, schools and livelihoods. In places like Hirshabelle State, entire villages have been washed away. These overlapping crises continue to push children out of school, leaving them at heightened risk of child marriage, child labour and forced recruitment into armed groups.

According to the education cluster, an estimated 4.9 million children are out of school in the country, with attendance among newly displaced children as low as 21%, compared with 39% for non-displaced children.

Amid these challenges, ECW is working closely with global partners like NRC to ensure Somalia’s children are not left behind.

Sundus learns with support from her teacher in class. © NRC/Abdulkadir Mohamed

ECW in Somalia

To date, ECW has invested more than US$64 million to reach hundreds of thousands of crisis-affected children with education support across Somalia. These investments are helping build resilience amid the country's ongoing climate and conflict emergencies.

In late 2023, a ‘Super El Niño’ event triggered severe flooding across Somalia, impacting more than 2.5 million people. The heavy rains that followed made matters worse – resulting in mass displacement and damaging or destroying hundreds of schools.

Recognizing the growing threat climate change poses to children’s learning, ECW's latest emergency response includes a groundbreaking pilot of an anticipatory action framework for humanitarian response in Somalia. Delivered by NRC together with local and international partners, this initiative helps communities take proactive steps to reduce the impact of future climate hazards – like floods – on children’s education. By putting anticipatory measures in place, the programme aims to keep learning going even when crises strike.

Yet, more support is urgently needed to ensure that all crisis-affected children can access safe, inclusive and equitable education – and that communities are better prepared to withstand the next climate shock.

In 2024, ECW issued a global climate appeal at the Climate Talks in Dubai (COP28). The appeal calls for US$150 million in additional funding to scale-up ECW’s response to the climate crisis and is part of ECW’s overall US$1.5 billion appeal to reach 20 million crisis-impacted children and adolescents through the Fund’s 2023-2026 Strategic Plan.

Sundus works on an assignment in her classroom. © NRC/Abdulkadir Mohamed

Dreams That Endure

For Sundus, education is the bridge between the losses she has endured and the future she imagines.

“I want to be a doctor when I grow up. If someone is sick, I want to help them. I want to wear the white coat and have people trust me.”

Her ambition is shared by many children across Somalia who continue to learn in the face of crisis. Access to education gives them more than knowledge – it provides stability, protection and a pathway to recovery for entire communities. As floods and droughts reshape the country, sustaining these opportunities will be critical to building resilience for the next generation.

“When I open my school bag, I see my future. I see a doctor, I see hope and I see peace.”

Access high-resolution photos from this story and our full media library on ECW’s Flickr

Footnotes

Story by Jelena Borak

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FootNotes

Story by Jelena Borak