EU allocates $27 million to UNICEF for Afghanistan

The European Union has allocated $27 million to the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) to improve and upgrade the learning environments for an estimated 200,000 girls and boys in primary schools across Afghanistan.

According to a statement, the EU’s contribution will enable UNICEF to improve the quality of existing school infrastructure in up to 385 primary schools by restoring classrooms, providing gender sensitive sanitation facilities and boundary walls.

The project will furthermore support in-service training for teachers to improve the quality of teaching, particularly in early grades.

“The classroom should feel like a second home for children. When classrooms are child-friendly and safe, children are motivated to learn, and their attendance, performance and completion rates go up,” said Raffaella Iodice, the EU Chargée d’Affaires to Afghanistan.

This two-year project will build on UNICEF’s ongoing support for children’s education in Afghanistan’s public schools and community-based education centres.

“We are proud to partner with the EU to keep thousands of children in school. Continued investment in the public school system is critical to support girls and boys who are still able to attend school. Education remains a beacon of hope for a better future for girls and boys in Afghanistan,” said Fran Equiza, UNICEF Representative to Afghanistan.