This archive report was first published on 4 November 2019.
On November 4, 2019, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) launched the No Child Left Behind campaign to address the acute lack of learning materials and classroom facilities in Kenya's refugee camps.
The campaign aims to raise funds from Kenya's private sector to provide refugee students with up-to-date schoolbooks, school desks, fund teacher training, and improve educational facilities.
With the rollout of the new curriculum, existing learning materials need to be replaced, making the situation even more critical.
UNHCR Representative in Kenya, Fathiaa Abdalla, emphasized the importance of education for refugee children, stating, "Education is vital for the future of refugee children and a key priority for UNHCR. The critical deficit of up-to-date learning materials has resulted in an average of seven refugee students sharing one schoolbook amongst themselves. We believe that the private sector, including individuals, companies, and foundations, can play a large role in ensuring refugee access to education so that no child is left behind."
UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, Mercy Masika, also expressed her support for the campaign, sharing her experience of witnessing pre-primary classes where children were sitting on the classroom floor and primary students taking exams outside in the open air due to lack of facilities.
