Joint Statement on the Dire Situation of Teachers in Yemen

The violent conflict in Yemen is severely affecting the education of millions of children throughout the country and takes a heavy toll on teachers.

The war has pushed at least half a million children out of school since 2015, and another 3.7 million are at risk of missing this school year if teachers are not paid.

On World Teachers’ Day with the theme, “The right to education means the right to a qualified teacher”, Education Cannot Wait, the Global Partnership for Education, UNESCO and UNICEF are calling for the resumption of salary payments for the 145,000 Yemeni teachers, who teach children under dire and life-threatening circumstances.

Further delay in paying teachers will likely lead to the collapse of the education sector and impact millions of children in Yemen making them vulnerable to child labor, recruitment into the fighting, trafficking, abuse and early marriage.

Teachers who have not received regular salaries for two years, can no longer meet their most basic needs and have been forced to seek other ways of income to provide for their families.

The global community must unite to end violence against children in Yemen and protect their right to education.

There is no time to waste. An entire generation of children is facing the loss of their education – and their future.

Without our collective commitment and action, we will fail to meet the 2030 Agenda – Leaving no child and no teacher behind.

Education Cannot Wait, the Global Partnership for Education, UNESCO and UNICEF are committed to continuing our support for equitable, inclusive quality education for all Yemeni children.

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Download the full statement in English here