NEW YORK, JULY 14 – How to make sure that children in areas of protracted conflicts receive inclusive education: this was the issue discussed during a High Level debate that Italy, Japan and Switzerland co-sponsored along with UNESCO and UNICEF at UN Headquarters today.
“The protection of education in armed conflicts and crisis-affected settings is an outstanding priority for Italy”, said the Italian Permament Representative, Ambassador Maurizio Massari: “In emergency settings as much as in fragile and conflict-affected areas, we prioritize providing support for girls’ education. The quality and inclusivity of education and teachers’ preparation are important objectives for Italy as well. We adhere to the Declaration on Safe Schools approved in 2015 to protect students, school staff and educational infrastructure in times of war. We believe it is essential to continue to raise the attention of the international community on this topic in all the international fora”, he added.
Massari echoed what other panelists had said: “We are living in a dire humanitarian crisis and children, together with their parents, are asked to leave their countries abandoning education. We have an obligation to stop the risks faced by children and teenagers in crisis-affected situations and we should remember that those not in school face higher risks of rape, homicide, prostitution, and other dangerous, frequently illegal, activities”. (@OnuItalia)
