Limiting and Planning for Schools as Temporary Evacuation Centres in Emergencies: Policy brief and practice guidance for Pacific Nations

For the past decades in the Pacific, schools have been used as unplanned shelters by Internally Displaced Persons, and sometimes even as bases for fighting forces during conflict. This is incredibly disruptive to children’s education and demonstrates an unacceptable use of educational facilities, especially considering the importance of education in a time of crisis. Moreover, if a school has not been explicitly designed and prepared as an evacuation centre or damage to a school puts the sheltering population at risk, then schools should not be used as an evacuation centre. However, where schools are safe, they can offer an adequate temporary solution if specific conditions are met in advance.

This guidance is intended to support education authorities and disaster management officers to make decisions and allocate resources to meet shelter needs of the population, to protect children’s rights to safety and wellbeing, educational continuity, and to protect education sector investments.