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Children love to learn. If they are denied access to knowledge, we also deny them the opportunity to change their lives for the better.

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Mobilising Resources for the Most Marginalised Children: Expanding Private Sector and Non-traditional Funding

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Many countries struggle to provide quality education for children already enrolled in school and do not have the resources to ensure full universal primary education (UPE), even though commitments to UPE are included in most 2030 national strategies for education. One of the persistent challenges to meeting SDG 4 targets is insufficient financial resources. Since inception, EAC's approach has been to work in partnership and emphasise innovations that bring about such solutions and keep the focus on the education rights of the world's most marginalised OOSC.
Mobilising Resources for the Most Marginalised Children: Expanding Private Sector and Non-traditional Funding

Despite multiple global commitments, according to UIS data for the school year ending in 2018, about 258 million children and youth remain out of school, including an unconscionable 59 million children at the primary level. Further, there are many who are enrolled, yet fail to complete their education or even achieve expected learning outcomes. From 2000 until 2007, significant progress was made in reducing the number of out of school children (OOSC). The number of OOSC was reduced by almost half. By 2008, however, enrolments started to stall and in some countries the number of OOSC increased.

At present and against the backdrop of protracted conflict in many countries and the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of OOSC is likely to rise dramatically. In fact, according to UNESCO (2020), at one point during 2020, 191 countries had implemented nationwide or localised school closures, resulting in over 91 per cent of enrolled students, or 1.5 billion people, not being able to go to school, due to the pandemic.

Without question, the mismatch between the educational reality that children experience around the world and what has been committed vis-a-vis global commitments and human rights treaties is striking. This occasional paper describes Educate A Child’s approaches and strategies to, and experience in, finding and focussing resources to ensure the most marginalised children have access to quality primary education.

Impact

"Humanity will not overcome the immense challenges we face unless we ensure that children get the quality education that equips them to play their part in the modern world." -- HH Sheikha Moza bint Nasser

Surpassing

19 million

beneficiaries across all programmes of Education Above All Foundation

10,687

Scholarships

90%

retention rate

2.6 million+

Skills training provided to teachers, school staff, and community members

1 million+

Youth Empowered