Children not attending schools, primarily in countries with active war zones, is a critical issue this World Teacher’s Day.
Today is World Teachers’ Day, established in 1994 to commemorate the signing of the Recommendation on the Status of Teachers drawn up in Paris on 5 October 1966.
Teachers, Unicef says, are at the heart of quality education, but the industry continues to suffer from underinvestment and fewer students.
According to a 2024 report from the United Nations Children’s Fund, only 31% of countries had effective teacher professional development systems in place — less than half the 64% target.
Worldwide, the report says, the number of out-of-school children and young people (Oosc) has been around 265 million for a decade, but the latest estimates show that Oosc were increasing to 272 million in 2023.
According to Unicef, Official Development Assistance (ODA) for education will decrease by USD 3.2 billion, a 24% decrease from 2023. This decrease would increase the number of children out of school worldwide from 272 million to 278 million.
“No child should be deprived of the right to learn and build a future: ensuring trained, motivated and supported teachers means not only offering knowledge, but also protection, hope and opportunities for life,” said Nicola Graziano, president of Uncief Italy.
85 million children do not attend school
Looking at the details of children not attending school, Unicef estimates that 234 million children need support to access quality education, an increase of 35 million in the last three years.
Of these 234 million children, 85 million do not attend school at all: 52% are girls, 17% are refugees or internally displaced persons and over 20% are children with disabilities.
The situation in Gaza is particularly acute, where as of July 2025, 1,466,000 children are facing difficulties in gaining an education. By June 2025, 588 school buildings had been affected, of which 538 in the Gaza Strip (95.4 per cent) and another 50 in the West Bank.
In Sudan, more than 17 million of the 19 million school-age children were out of school. In Haiti, escalating gang violence and civil unrest have left more than 1.4 million children in urgent need of education support.
