Mind the Gap: The state of girls’ education in crisis and conflict

This report summarizes recent progress made in improving education and training for girls and women affected by conflict and crisis, including refugees and internally displaced persons. It was commissioned by the Inter-agency Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE) under the auspices of the INEE Reference Group on Girls’ Education in Emergencies in response to commitments made by leaders of seven of the world’s largest economies at the 44th Group of Seven Summit, which was hosted by Canada in 2018. By adopting The Charlevoix Declaration on Quality Education for Girls, Adolescent Girls and Women in Developing Countries (hereafter referred to as ‘the Charlevoix Declaration on Quality Education’), these leaders collectively committed to invest in quality education for girls and women during conflict and crisis, including refugees and internally displaced persons.

The purpose of this report is to contribute to the evidence base on education for girls and women in crisis situations. The report draws from data on 44 crisis-affected countries (see Table 1), from recent research, and from a set of case studies of interventions in a range of crisis-affected contexts. Given that the data available at the time of writing were primarily from 2018 and 2019, the data presented do not reflect the impact the COVID-19 crisis has had on girls’ education in emergencies; however, some analysis of the education response to the crisis is included.