Educators without Borders International (EwBI) organized a seminar entitled: “Rekindle the Light of Educating Children in the Underprivileged Zones” on Wednesday, August 18, 2021, in Geneva, Switzerland. The seminar featured education, international humanitarian law, and conflict resolution experts, along with representatives of international organizations working in the humanitarian and relief field in refugee camps.
The seminar aimed to shed light on the challenges facing educating children in underprivileged zones and to highlight the efforts and programs addressing the access and quality of educational services provided to children living under the deprived circumstances.
The speakers highlighted the challenges and new opportunities of educating children in underprivileged zones, indicating that while the world is recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, children in the underprivileged zone may have quality education through technology support.
The new opportunities of distance learning and the possibilities of providing quality education worldwide through the Internet bring new hope to educate children in the area of conflicts, disasters, or poverty, they asserted.
The participants concluded that digitization of education has become an urgency, given that enhancing the students’ digital skills will also contribute to their integration into the technology-driven global economy, thus reducing the gap between rich and poor countries.
The seminar also discussed the role of international NGOs in supporting children's education in underprivileged zones and providing them with the knowledge and skills necessary to realize their full potential and increasing their contribution to building their societies.
The speakers also pointed out that studies have shown that children affected by various disadvantaged factors are less likely to survive to school age, more rarely attend school and complete a full basic education, and are much less likely to gain access to secondary education.
Educators without Borders International is a Geneva-based non-governmental organization that seeks to provide quality education for children in underprivileged and conflict-affected communities.