Supporting Education in Crisis-Hit Region

There are many barriers to education in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). From restrictive social policies that limit girls’ access to learning to devastating wars that destroy school buildings and displace families, millions of children in the region are out of school.

Earlier this year, Iraq’s parliament passed amendments to the country’s personal status law that could allow some girls as young as nine to be married.¹ Among the many harmful implications of the new rules is the likely impact on education for Iraqi girls, who are already underrepresented in both primary and secondary schooling.²

Additionally, Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers have banned older girls and women from attending institutions offering medical training, the last remaining opportunity for them to pursue some form of higher education.³ At least 1.4 million Afghan girls have been denied access to secondary education by previous Taliban bans.⁴

“There is no education and there is no joy,” Asad, a SAT-7 PARS viewer from Afghanistan, told us recently. “As I think about everyone – especially my own family – I am very upset and anxious about what is happening.”

SAT-7’s Persian channel, SAT-7 PARS, is responding to the situation in Afghanistan by producing a new Dari-language education program, Sun of Hope. Focusing on literacy skills starting with the alphabet, the program will offer free teaching to those who are out of school or struggling to make progress. “Language is the gateway to other learning,” says Nader Taghizadeh, the program’s director. “We want this to be the first step in the learning process for Afghan children and eventually move on to other subjects.” The first season is currently in production.

Although girls in neighboring Iran have much better access to schooling, ongoing tensions over the country’s compulsory hijab rules are affecting girls and women in various ways. “My daughter is being harassed at school,” said Targell, a SAT-7 PARS viewer from Iran. “The school mistreats her and other children. Recently my daughter had taken off her headscarf, and the teacher took a photo of her to report her to the authorities.”

Conflict Affects Millions

Conflicts in different parts of the MENA are having a disastrous effect on education. Out of 19 million school-aged children in Sudan, over 17 million are out of school due to the war that started in April 2023. But in September, there was some positive news from the country’s Red Sea State, where 600 schools were reopening, enabling nearly 140,000 children to start the new school year.⁵

While ceasefires have brought a halt to the conflicts in Lebanon and the Holy Land, the educational fallout is likely to affect children in both places for some time.

Over 650,000 children have been disconnected from all formal learning in Gaza since the start of the conflict. More than 95 percent of schools have been partially or completely destroyed, and at least 87 percent will require significant reconstruction before they can function again.⁶

New research published last month found that the recent conflict in Lebanon had deepened a national education crisis in which children have already lost up to 60% of school time over the past six years. The report by the Center for Lebanese Studies and the University of Cambridge’s REAL Center highlighted how Lebanese schools have endured compound crises, including the 2020 Beirut port explosion and the COVID-19 pandemic.⁷

SAT-7 is continuing to support young Arab viewers who cannot access schooling through a daily four-hour block of educational programming on the SAT-7 KIDS channel. Programs include the primary education program My School as well as various educational documentaries.

My School’s extensive library of Arabic, English, French, math, and science content is also available 24-7 on SAT-7’s streaming platform, SAT-7 PLUS, meaning children whose lives have been turned upside down by war – or curtailed by restrictions – can learn in their homes and at their own pace.

“Children are the leaders of the future,” said Andrea El-Mounayer, SAT‑7 KIDS Channel Manager. “It is our responsibility to equip them with the education and values they need to think critically, make informed decisions, and build a brighter future for themselves and their communities. At SAT-7 KIDS, we believe that providing children with quality education is not just an opportunity but a calling. This mission becomes even more urgent when we consider the challenges so many children in our region face. They are children who might feel forgotten by the world, but we refuse to let their potential be lost.”

Sources

¹ The Guardian

² UNICEF

³ Human Rights Watch

⁴ UN News

⁵ UNICEF

⁶ UNICEF

⁷ University of Cambridge