ADDIS ABABA, April 29 (Xinhua) -- Conflict and natural disasters have forced more than 4.1 million children out of school in Ethiopia's Amhara Region, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) has disclosed.
More than 4.1 million children are out of school in the Amhara Region due to ongoing clashes, drought, and other compounding factors, the UNOCHA said in an update on Monday. It said the figure represents about 35 percent of the total number of students in the region for the current academic year.
According to data from the UNOCHA, ongoing insecurities and the impacts of the recent two-year Northern Ethiopia conflict have forced some 4,178 schools to close, constituting about 41 percent of the total schools in the region.
Noting that approximately 300 schools in various zones of the region are damaged and around 350 schools are non-functional due to conflicts and insecurities, the UNOCHA said some districts in the region have closed schools due to a lack of school supplies.
It further said about 1.7 million children in the region require scholastic materials, while more than 56,000 teachers and educational personnel need psycho-social support.
The regional authorities are currently planning a six-month curriculum to recover lost learning. It said school feeding programs have supported over 156,000 students in eight districts, but a significant increase in food and education support is still needed.
On Friday, the UNOCHA, in its latest Ethiopia humanitarian situation update, warned that ongoing insecurities and drought conditions are causing displacement with increasing vulnerabilities among the affected communities. ■