In 2024, extreme weather events, including heatwaves, floods, and droughts, disrupted education for approximately 242 million students across 85 countries, according to UNICEF. This caused significant school closures and delays, with heatwaves identified as the most severe threat to education.
UNICEF Executive Director, Catherine Russell, highlighted that one in seven students missed school due to these events, impacting their health, safety, and long-term learning. Low- and lower-middle-income countries were hit hardest, accounting for 74% of affected students.
South Asia faced the greatest disruption, with 128 million students impacted, while East Asia, the Pacific, and Africa also saw millions of children missing school due to climate-related events. In Europe, floods in Italy and Spain affected over 900,000 students.
Russell emphasized that education is often overlooked in climate policies, despite its critical role in preparing children for climate challenges.
Extreme weather has shown to be one of the most frequent disruptors of education, underscoring the urgent need for climate resilience strategies in schools.
