285 mln children could be out of school amid growing global education crisis, says HRW

Human Rights Watch has sounded the alarm over a worsening global education crisis, revealing that an estimated 272 million children and youth will be out of primary and secondary school, including approximately 200 million missing out on secondary education. This marks a troubling increase of 21 million compared to the previous year.

In its latest statement, the organization emphasized that this figure only scratches the surface of the crisis. Citing data from the UNESCO Institute for Statistics and the Global Education Monitoring Report, the organization noted that 13 million children in conflict zones are out of school.

However, if children in all active conflict areas — from Gaza to Sudan — are taken into account, the true number of out-of-school children could reach 285 million.

The crisis is even deeper when considering early education. Human Rights Watch highlighted that 175 million preschool-age children are not enrolled in any early childhood education programs, denying them critical developmental opportunities.

The organization pointed to chronic funding shortfalls and systemic discrimination as key factors exacerbating educational exclusion. It stressed that insufficient government investment undermines the ability to offer free public education, construct and maintain schools, supply materials, train teachers, and adapt to emergencies like armed conflict or natural disasters.

To reverse the trend, Human Rights Watch called on governments worldwide to honor their education commitments, protect budgets from austerity cuts, and meet international financing targets — that is 4% to 6% of GDP or 15% to 20% of total public expenditure allocated to education.

It also urged donor governments to reinforce their foreign aid contributions in line with international human rights obligations to ensure access to quality, inclusive education for all children, everywhere.