MANCHESTER, United Kingdom — Education is a basic human right, yet it remains inaccessible to 224 million children affected by global crises. Of these, 32% (72 million) cannot attend school, leading to projections that 825 million youths will lack basic workforce skills by 2030. Around 80% of Lebanese people reside in poverty unable to meet basic needs, alongside 17 million Syrians dependent on aid. The LEGO Foundation, in partnership with the International Rescue Committee (IRC), has committed to a flexible five-year, $97 million fund aimed at reaching 5 million children across East Africa and the Middle East, with countries under consideration including Ethiopia, Lebanon, the Palestinian territories, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria and Uganda. LEGO‘s pledge will expand PlayMatters, the IRC-led program that has previously trained teachers to bring play-based learning to classrooms in East Africa, along with prior regional programs such as Ahlan Simsim and Play to Learn.
Future Generations
National-level education policy leaders have begun working with playful learning program leaders to proactively advocate for the admission of new teaching methods. This includes an extensive rollout of multimedia lessons in multiple languages, and color-based games to be embedded in future curricula. An additional $30 million LEGO pledge in partnership with Co-Impact also supports locally led solutions for learning and well-being issues that help meet rising non-traditionally classified classroom demands. This highlights LEGO‘s growing aspiration to work alongside government and the private sector in assisting life-sustaining efforts for the millions of impoverished children living in Middle Eastern conflict zones. These efforts aim to address current issues, such as two-thirds of children continuing education without achieving proficiency in reading or math, and the fact that only 1.2% of annual humanitarian aid goes toward early childhood education.
Young Children (ages 0 to 8)
Building upon past reliable holistic early-learning programs, LEGO‘s Middle East Pledge will bolster important aspects of young children’s development such as “responsive caregiving, early learning, psychosocial well-being and nurturing care.” Prior programs reached hundreds of thousands of children and caregivers in Jordan, achieving high caregiver satisfaction ratings due to their focus on social-emotional teaching, widely available through media formats accessible to the most vulnerable, impoverished and remote crisis-stricken children and caregivers. The media-style learning format has enhanced kids’ literacy and numeracy skills across schools in the region. It has been crucial for socio-emotional stability amidst evolving conflicts and vital for future educational and workforce skills.
School-Aged Children (ages 3 to 12 plus)
Play-based learning in newly established classrooms will be implemented to adapt to critical crisis situations, given the stark realities of ongoing Middle Eastern conflicts. The new initiative will expand PlayMatters, LEGO‘s and the IRC’s existing educational program, by training teachers of three-to 12-year-olds to design lessons to the needs of traumatized children experiencing conflict across East Africa and the Middle East. It will encourage consistently accessible and holistic learning programs, vital for positive well-being amidst the toxic stresses of conflict displacement.
Conclusion
LEGO‘s sustained socio-economic efforts across the Middle East illustrate positive change and hope for regional prosperity, benefiting millions of impoverished children. LEGO‘s Middle East pledge of $97 million is commendable, and other philanthropic non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are encouraged to build upon this effort post-2031, ensuring a brighter future for subsequent generations.
– Oliver Jones
Oliver is based in Manchester, UK and focuses on Business and Global Health for The Borgen Project.
Photo: Flickr