Education in Emergencies: The Gender Implications - Advocacy Brief. Bangkok: UNESCO Bangkok, 2006. 12 pp. 1. Education policy. 2. Natural disasters. 3. Manmade disasters. 4. Gender roles. ISBN 92-9223-092-1 Photo credit: © UNICEF/PAKA01495D/Zaidi © UNESCO 2006 Published by the UNESCO Asia and Pacific Regional Bureau for Education 920 Sukhumvit Road, Prakanong Bangkok 10110, Thailand Printed in Thailand The designations employed and the presentation of material throughout the publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of UNESCO concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning its frontiers or boundaries. APL/06/ROS/127-250 Advocacy Brief Education in Emergencies: The Gender Implications C o n t e n t s Acknowledgements iii Introduction to Education in Emergencies 1 Gender and Emergencies 2 Emergency Situations: The Gender Implications in Education 3 Gender, Education and Protection in Emergencies 6 General Policy and Programme Development Guidelines, Strategies and Approaches 7 Specific Programme Strategies 8 Conclusions 10 Bibliography/Resource List 11 A cknowledgements This advocacy brief, prepared for UNESCO Bangkok by Jackie Kirk, has benefited from the review and comments of the Advisory Committee for Advocacy and Policy Briefs. The Committee consists of the following experts: Sheldon Shaeffer, Lydia Ruprecht, Florence Migeon, and Shirley Miske. In addition, valuable inputs were received from Hoa Phuong Tran, Regional Education Advisor, Plan International and Silje Skeie, Associate Expert, UNESCO Bangkok. © UNICEF/J. Estey iii © UNICEF/J. Estey I ntroduction to Education in Emergencies ‘Education in emergencies’ refers to a broad range of educational activities – formal and non-formal – which are life-saving and life-sustaining and, therefore, critical for children, youth and their families in times of crisis. Crisis situations include natural disasters such as earthquakes, tsunamis and floods, as well as man-made conflicts. Emergency education programmes are designed according to the particular context of the environment and may be short-term, temporary solutions such as ‘tent schools’ for when school buildings are destroyed, damaged or inaccessible. However, education in emergencies also refers to longer-term education policy and programme development in chronic crisis situations. These include situations where refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) are uprooted for many years and have long-term education needs, or where the state is chronically ‘fragile’ and unable or unwilling to provide quality education services for the population. In addition, education in emergencies covers education activities in post-emergency recovery, reconstruction and peace-building periods. Education activities evolve over time and generally span different phases of the crisis – acute emergency, recovery and reconstruction. Even short-term, improvised education interventions should be planned with an awareness of the longer-term education needs of the community and of the vision and policies of A relevant authorities. dv o c a c No clear dividing line exists between ‘emergency’ and ‘regular’ education, especially in y B chronic crisis and reconstruction contexts, and much accepted ‘good practice’ applies rie f equally across both. However, education in emergencies does have particular features. Over  recent years, awareness of the importance of education in emergencies has grown, and E education is now included in international disaster relief funding appeals alongside other d u c ‘traditional’ humanitarian sectors such as water and sanitation, health and shelter. Education a t programmes are then supported by international and national NGOs and UN agencies. This io n is particularly necessary when the state education system is not fully functioning. Where in E teachers have been killed, injured, have fled, or are otherwise occupied with fighting or m e with their own survival and that of their families, ‘emergency teachers’ may need to be r g e recruited from within the local population. Condensed, rapid training programmes for new, n c inexperienced teachers are a common feature of emergency education programmes. The ie s programme content has to be adapted according to specific, local needs, but the protection : T h and promotion of students’ psychosocial well-being underpins most interventions. In times e G of crisis, the restoration of formal and non-formal education programmes as early as possible e n d is a significant step towards restoring normalcy and providing reassuring routine, continuity e r and hope for the future of both the children and their communities. Im p lic Quality, relevant education is a right of all children. Children in crisis situations often need a t new and different knowledge, skills and learning experiences in order to survive and to ion s thrive in changed circumstances. They are particularly vulnerable, facing increased risks of physical and emotional harm. Education content to counter these risks may include, for example, land mine education, health and nutrition education, and other life skills such as HIV/AIDS prevention. Refugees or internally displaced children may need to learn in 1 Psychosocial well-being refers to the close connection between psychological aspects of experience (thoughts, emotions and behaviour) and wider social experiences (relationships, traditions and culture). It is broader than concepts such as ‘mental health’, which run the risk of ignoring aspects of the social context, and ensures that the importance of family and community are recognized (PSWG, 2003). a different language than that of the local, host population and to follow a curriculum that will allow them to transfer back into the education system when they return home. However, for children and youth displaced over a long period, learning the language of the host community may be important for ensuring future income-generating possibilities, as well as for building bridges between communities. Emergency education programmes often contain elements of disaster prevention, preparedness and mitigation, such as lessons for students about how to protect themselves in the event of an earthquake or what to do if rebel forces come to their village. In conflict-affected contexts, the inclusion of peace education and conflict resolution in education programmes for children and youth should s n o support peace processes at different levels and contribute towards more peaceful futures. In ti ca this respect, careful attention to revising traditional curriculum content is required, especially pli in potentially-sensitive subjects such as history and social science. This is particularly the case m r I when notions of ethnic, religious or geographical superiority have been emphasized within e d the curriculum and may actually fuel tensions or conflict between different groups within n e G the population. e h T s: A number of international policy developments have helped to shape an evolving field of e ci practice known as ‘education in emergencies’, which is now integrated into education n e policy frameworks of relevant UN agencies (primarily UNICEF, UNHCR and UNESCO) and g er multilateral and bilateral donors. Education in emergencies is also gaining ground as a new m E field for study and research. Graça Machel’s 1996 report to the UN on children affected by n n i conflict and the follow-up report of 2000 were significant in raising awareness of the extent o to which children suffer in times of war. These reports also highlighted the importance of ti a c education and the fact that many children affected by conflict – most notably girls – do not u d have access to schooling. The World Education Forum, held in Dakar, Senegal in April 2000, E  also recognized that the Education for All (EFA) targets will not be met unless education systems in conflict-and disaster-affected contexts are given specific attention. ‘Fragile states’ f e ri – many of which are crisis or post-conflict states – are now a focus for policy development B cy of donors and UN and other agencies. Aware that reaching the Millennium Development a oc Goals – especially those relating to education – in fragile states is highly challenging, donors v Ad are developing policy guidelines for alternative forms and approaches to service delivery in such countries. G ender and Emergencies There is now increased awareness of how emergencies such as conflict and natural disasters are experienced differently by men and women, boys and girls. The different roles, activities, skills, positions and status of men and women in families, communities and institutions create gender-differentiated risks, vulnerabilities and capacities in an emergency situation. For example, many more women than men died in the 2004 South Asian tsunami because 2 See Machel, 1996, 2000 3 MDG 2: Achieve universal primary education. (Target 3: Ensure that, by 2015, children everywhere, boys and girls alike, will be able to complete a full course of primary schooling.) MDG 3: Promote gender equality and empower women. (Target 4: Eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education, preferably by 2005, and at all levels of education no later than 2015.) women were more likely to be at home at the time – or in the case of a community in Sri Lanka, taking their baths in the sea, close to the shore. In many locations, men were further out to sea and so were safer. Women were also physically less able to run from the enormous waves and to climb trees. In conflict situations, men and young boys may be at greater risk of recruitment into fighting forces and into potentially-lethal active combat, but women and girls may be forced to serve as sex slaves and cooks, or to take on other non-combatant roles. They may be targeted for rape and sexual abuse by fighting forces, but may also be subjected to sexual violence by the men of their own community and family. Levels of sexual violence and exploitation of women and girls can also increase when natural disasters strike, as well as in the aftermath if displaced families are crowded into poorly-designed camps with few protective features such as good lighting and separate toilet/washing facilities for females. Unfortunately, the desire to protect women and girls from such risks can also mean that they are prevented from accessing education, health and other critical support services. At the same time, emergency situations and the priority to survive mean that both men and women often have to take on non-traditional gender roles and activities. In the aftermath of the South Asian earthquake of October 2005, for example, widowed men were cooking food for their children for the first time in their lives. In some circumstances, women affected by a crisis may also benefit from the ‘window of opportunity’ to access new opportunities – for example, to go out to work and control family finances for the first time. However, A d these shifts may not be sustained in the long term and women may end up carrying a v o double burden – that is, continuing to do both their traditional activities such as household ca c y chores and childcare and additional tasks that would otherwise be carried out by men. In B r some emergency situations, especially conflicts in which ethnicity and cultural identity are ie f threatened, traditional gender differences and patterns of activity become even more rigidly  adhered to, and women and girls are subjected to increased limitations on mobility and E d participation. u c a t io n in E E m mergency Situations: e r g The Gender Implications in Education e n c ie s : T h e Machel’s reports highlighted the disproportionate impact of conflict on girls and, in G particular, on girls’ access to education. Subsequent studies, reports, programmes and policy en d interventions have raised awareness of the gender dimensions of emergency situations and e r of the critical need to ensure that both girls and boys have early and equal access to, and Im p benefit equally from, relevant education (see bibliography). Although there are exceptions, lic a in most emergency situations, girls’ educational opportunities are more limited than boys’. t io Even under very difficult conditions, however, ‘windows of opportunity’ may also open up for n s girls and women to access education. It is critical to establish gender-responsive emergency education programmes early on as these lay the foundations for increased participation of women and girls in recovery/reconstruction activities, as well as in community and national development processes, including, for example, standing in newly-democratic elections. If women and girls are not equally included from the beginning, then it can be very difficult to encourage them into the system later because of the tendency for emergency arrangements to set patterns for the future. 4 See, for example, Oxfam International (2005) Factors that limit girls’ educational opportunities in stable contexts often intensify in crises. For example, there may be even greater preference given to sons when family resources are limited by collapsed markets and reduced access to income. Boys’ school attendance is prioritized in many stable countries, but this can become even more pronounced in times of crisis when there is usually less money available to pay fees and buy uniforms or supplies. At the same time, emergency situations create particular disadvantages for girls, such as the often extremely unbalanced demographics with large numbers of women-headed households. When these women have to take up work outside the home, older daughters care for siblings, increase their household chores and, as a result, stay home from school. s n o ti a Sexual violence also affects girls and boys in many so-called ‘normal’ situations, but at c pli times of crisis and in conflict situations, the magnitude may be greater and the impact m r I intensified because prevention, referral and support mechanisms collapse. The risks of HIV/ e d AIDS and sexually-transmitted disease (STD) infection are also heightened. Conflict creates n e exaggerated cultures of male domination, aggressiveness, violence, and impunity. Girls and G e women inevitably suffer. In the ‘abnormal’ world of a refugee camp, sexual violence can h T s: become normalized. This adversely affects girls’ education in different ways. The risk of cie sexual violence on the way to school, or even in and around the school, may convince n e parents to keep their daughters at home. Increased risk is created by, for example, large g er numbers of soldiers, rebels, police or even peacekeepers in the area, or by having to go m E further than normal to find firewood, food or water. Girls who do go to school may find n n i that they are subjected to harassment, exploitation and even rape by male students or o teachers, with no one to turn to for protection, response or reporting. In an emergency ti ca education programme, checks and balances such as professional orientation sessions for u d new teachers, codes of conduct and regular supervision for teachers may not be in place, E  and new ‘emergency’ teachers may have far lower levels of professionalism than ‘regular’ teachers. Furthermore, large numbers of over-age male students, who are trying to catch up f e ri on years of missed schooling, often contribute to an uncomfortable classroom environment B y for girls. This is especially true if, as is the case in most programmes, there are very few c a oc women teachers. v d A Girls drop out of school because of early marriage and pregnancy in many non-emergency contexts, but the pressures to do so may be increased or slightly different in emergencies. Diminished family resources may force families to marry off their daughters earlier than they normally would in order to obtain a dowry payment, for example. Families may also be forced to compromise their daughters to marry in order to win favour – and security – from soldiers, rebels or others with power and influence. Even when both girls and boys affected by crises are able to access education, gender inequalities with respect to the quality and appropriateness of education may remain. Particularly in emergency programmes, the teachers are usually male, and it can be very difficult to ensure that there are women in school who can act as mentors, role models or resource persons for girls. Women teachers – if they are present in the school – may be too preoccupied with their own concerns to provide additional support to girls. Finding other women who have the time, capacity and willingness to work in schools may also be difficult. Crash teacher training courses may only cover the very basic topics of how to organize and teach a class. Furthermore, teachers more often struggle to manage with basic classroom management and instruction (especially with large, multi-age classes) during crises and thus may be unable to ensure that the lessons relate to girls’ experiences as well as to boys’. Teaching materials often have to be pulled together quickly from what is available, with little regard for any gender stereotyping they may contain.