A staggering 242 million students worldwide experienced disruptions to their education in the past year due to extreme weather events, the United Nations children’s agency (UNICEF) revealed in a report released Friday, as per Al Jazeera.
Heatwaves, cyclones, and floods were among the culprits forcing school closures and reducing learning hours, impacting the lives and futures of children around the globe.
The report highlights that heatwaves were the most significant disruptor, with widespread school closures and reduced hours reported in countries like Bangladesh, the Philippines, and Cambodia. In total, 85 countries faced climate-related disruptions to their education systems, with a concerning 20 nations experiencing these impacts on a nationwide scale.
The burden of these climate-related school disruptions disproportionately falls on students in low and middle-income countries, who make up 74 percent of the nearly 250 million affected learners. South Asia bore the brunt of the impact, with approximately 128 million students facing educational upheaval, followed closely by the East Asia and Pacific regions.
UNICEF’s analysis also pointed to September as the month with the most frequent disruptions, with at least 18 countries being forced to suspend classes due to extreme weather.
