(Unicefaims to ensure all school-aged children are taught through the Myanmarcurriculum by 2023

DhakaTribune/UNB

May 1, 2022 2:30 PM

A breakthrough for Rohingya refugee children living in theCox's Bazar refugee camps in Bangladesh sees the first 10,000 children enrolledto receive education based on the national curriculum of their home countryMyanmar, says Unicef. 

This milestone will be reached this month, said the UNagency on Sunday. 

The Myanmar Curriculum Pilot, launched by Unicef andpartners in November 2021, is a critical step forward toward ensuring thefundamental right to education for Rohingya refugee children. It will helpprepare the children for their return to Myanmar. 

"There is a tremendous demand for education amongRohingya refugee children, and Unicef and partners are on the ground in thecamps, responding to that demand," said Sheldon Yett, Unicefrepresentative to Bangladesh. 

There are over 400,000 school-aged Rohingya children in theBangladesh refugee camps. 

With approximately 300,000 of these children attendinglearning centres, Unicef and partners are running a mammoth education operationin what is the largest refugee settlement in the world. 

There are 3,400 learning centres across multiple camps, ofwhich 2,800 are supported by Unicef. 

To date, most of the children have been learning through theso-called Learning Competency Framework Approach (LCFA), which covers levelsone to four and caters primarily to children aged 4-14. 

The LCFA was created as an emergency measure for Rohingyarefugee children and is a largely informal learning system. 

The curriculum that is now being piloted is based on theMyanmar national curriculum, and it provides Rohingya refugee children withformal and standardized education. 

In addition, the Myanmar Curriculum fills a criticalsecondary education gap: It provides schooling also for older children who havelargely lacked access to education. 

The Myanmar Curriculum Pilot initially targets 10,000children in grades six to nine. 

In normal circumstances, grades six to nine cater tochildren aged 11-14. 

However, many Rohingya refugee children have fallen behindin their education, and so most children enrolled in grades six to nine areaged 14-16. 

Unicef aims to scale up in phases so that by 2023, allschool-aged children are taught through the Myanmar curriculum. 

Despite much progress, approximately 100,000 school-agedRohingya refugee children are not in school, said the UN agency. 

Unicef and its partners are working to reach out to thesechildren and remove the barriers that prevent them from going to school. 

Private and community-based learning facilities that meetthe needs of both boys and girls, and which are operated with sufficientoversight, could also play a role in providing educational services. 

Unicef engages with all stakeholders who play a role in theeffort to provide Rohingya refugee children with equitable and inclusive accessto standardized education. 

"We need to do all we can to give these children hope,to provide them with education, to prepare them for their futures in Myanmar.Unicef will continue to work with the Rohingya refugee community, theGovernment of Bangladesh, and partners until every refugee child is reachedwith quality education," said Yett.