• The UN fund Education Cannot Wait (ECW) announced $2 million to expand schooling for Sudanese refugees in Chad.

• The aid targets 27,000 new students in Wadi Fira and Ennedi Est provinces, where schools are overwhelmed.

• ECW warns that only 22% of the $69.6 million regional education appeal has been funded.

The United Nations’ global fund for education in emergencies, Education Cannot Wait (ECW), has announced an additional $2 million to support schooling for Sudanese refugees in Chad as the influx continues to strain local education systems.

The new allocation will expand ECW’s education programs in the eastern provinces of Wadi Fira and Ennedi Est, areas facing surging refugee arrivals since conflict erupted in Sudan in April 2023.

The funding will be implemented in partnership with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and local organizations. ECW said the money will benefit about 27,000 new learners, bringing total beneficiaries under its First Emergency Response program to 97,000 students.

Funds will go toward rehabilitating classrooms, expanding school capacity, and providing psychosocial support. Many schools in eastern Chad now host over 100 pupils per classroom, while 125 classrooms were destroyed in recent floods in Wadi Fira, according to ECW.

More than 850,000 people have fled Sudan since the start of the conflict, with a large proportion crossing into Chad. The fund warned that without additional support, an entire generation of refugee children could lose access to education and future job opportunities.

“Education is not only a humanitarian necessity but also a pillar of long-term stability and social cohesion,” ECW said in its statement.

The Regional Refugee Response Plan coordinated by the UNHCR estimates total funding needs at $1.7 billion, including $69.6 million for education. Before ECW’s new contribution, only 22% of that education funding had been secured.

Chad, where 36.5% of the population lives in extreme poverty according to the World Bank, now hosts one of the largest refugee populations in Central Africa. ECW urged donors to step up commitments, stressing that humanitarian aid remains underfunded and that sustained international engagement is vital to avoid a lasting education crisis.

This article was initially published in French by Félicien Houindo Lokossou

Adapted in English by Ange Jason Quenum