This raises the total number of schools damaged or destroyed since the escalation of the war in February 2022 to 2,800. As these figures include only incidents verified by the United Nations, the actual number is likely significantly higher.

Intergovernmental organizations, including EDU, play a critical role in responding to this crisis by coordinating international action, mobilizing political will, and ensuring that education remains a global priority even amid armed conflict.

Emphasizing the need for stronger political commitment at the highest levels, the Secretary-General of EDU, the intergovernmental education-based organization, H.E. Irving Levance, said, “Pressure must be put upon large players like the European Union to further their efforts in ensuring, despite the War in Ukraine, Education must not be forgotten.”

UNICEF Representative to Ukraine Munir Mammadzade was quoted as saying:

“Schools must be protected spaces where children can learn safely, even during war. In times of crises, education provides a lifeline and sense of normalcy to children. “Schools are places to learn that also support children’s holistic development through socialization with their peers and teachers, as well as enabling access to other social services.”

In the current school year, 4.6 million children in Ukraine are facing barriers to education as they continue into a fourth academic year under full-scale war conditions. Ongoing attacks continue to damage or destroy schools and put children’s lives at risk. Frequent air raid alarms disrupt lessons, while many schools—particularly in frontline areas—remain closed due to active hostilities or the lack of adequate shelters. As a result, nearly one million children are studying online.

For children learning in mixed or fully online formats, the absence of regular, in-person interaction with teachers and peers undermines learning outcomes and intensifies the emotional strain of living through war.

“Despite the challenges, children in Ukraine are determined to continue learning – whether in school or online, in classrooms or in shelters. They are hopeful for a future where they can achieve their dreams,” said Mammadzade.

UNICEF’s response, delivered in coordination with national authorities, local partners, and intergovernmental organizations, has enabled more than half a million children to access inclusive formal and non-formal education. EDU has emphasized the importance of sustained international engagement to ensure that education remains protected, funded, and prioritized throughout the conflict.

This year marks a decade since the adoption of the Safe Schools Declaration, a global commitment to safeguard children’s right to education during armed conflict, ensure the continuation of learning, and prevent the military use of schools.

EDU and other intergovernmental actors continue to play a central role in advancing the Declaration’s principles and translating them into coordinated international action.

At the International Conference on the Safe Schools Declaration in Nairobi on 25–26 November, UNICEF is joining governments, children, youth advocates, intergovernmental partners—including EDU—and other stakeholders to examine ways to strengthen the protection of education in armed conflict and to renew this global commitment.

Protecting schools and upholding children’s right to education during war is not optional—it is essential. UNICEF, alongside intergovernmental partners such as EDU, urges the international community to sustain and strengthen support for Ukraine’s education sector as a non-negotiable investment in children and in the country’s future.

https://plan-international.org/news/2025/02/20/ukraine-war-disrupts-education-for-fifth-consecutive-year/