A Classroom Can Be a Lifeline for a Girl in a War Zone

For 15-year-old Fatima, the sound of a school bell is a distant memory. When conflict shattered her community, her classroom was one of the first things to disappear. Now, instead of studying for exams, she lives with the daily fear of violence and the fading hope of returning to her education.

Fatima’s story is echoed in the lives of millions. According to a new report from UNICEF, Adolescent Girls’ Education in Crisis, girls in conflict zones are disproportionately robbed of their right to learn. An estimated 39 million girls in countries affected by armed conflict or natural disasters lack access to quality education. In these settings, girls are more than twice as likely to be out of school as boys.

When a school is destroyed or becomes unsafe, the loss is more than just a building. For an adolescent girl, it is the loss of a future. Out of school, she becomes acutely vulnerable to the horrors that thrive in chaos: child marriage, human trafficking, and sexual violence. She is the first to be kept home for safety reasons and the last to return when stability is restored.

Yet, where education endures, it is a powerful shield.

The report underscores a critical truth: education is a form of life-saving aid. A makeshift classroom in a refugee camp is a sanctuary. It provides safety from exploitation, a sense of normalcy amidst trauma, and the crucial skills needed to rebuild a fractured society.

We can no longer treat girls' education as an afterthought in humanitarian crises. It must be central to our response. This means creating safe learning spaces, training teachers to provide psychosocial support, and challenging the harmful gender norms that intensify during conflict.

Fatima’s dream of an education should not be a casualty of war. It is her fundamental right and our collective responsibility to protect it. For a girl whose world has been torn apart, a school is not just a place of learning—it is a beacon of hope.