Although we are from different countries, Pakistan and Syria, we both know what it means to be denied education because of wars and conflicts. We share a deep hope to see all Syrian refugee children back in school, so that their dreams and gifts are not lost to the world for good.
We first met in Jordan’s Zaatari refugee camp, where Syrian girls as young as 12 and 13 are being married off to older men. For these girls’ families, marriage is seen as a way to protect their daughters from poverty and violence.
Among refugee families living in Jordan, rates of child marriage have doubled in the past three years,and most of those girls will never go into a classroom again.
Five years ago, things were very different for our sisters. Before the war in Syria, all children could attend 12 years of school for free, and the country had a 90% literacy rate.
We have been doing our best to persuade parents and girls that education is the best way to protect their futures.
In a few days’ time, we will step forward to persuade world leaders of the same thing. We will go together to the Supporting Syria conference in London to remind our leaders that the future of these children is in their hands. Without significant increases in funding, thousands of Syrian young people will remain out of school again this year.
Every year that’s missed will cost them dearly in terms of lost opportunities for themselves, their families and their country.
Border countries like Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Egypt and Iraq are opening their doors and their schools to Syrian children, but they don’t have resources to help every child. The world’s richest countries encourage refugees to stay in the region instead of coming to Europe, while not providing the funding border countries need to deal with the crisis.
To help every child affected by the Syria crisis to get into school this year, rich countries must give $1.4bn. This sounds like a lot, but the cost of inaction is far higher. Experts say we risk having an entire “lost generation” of Syrian children.
The children of Syria are not lost. But they are waiting. They are waiting for world leaders to make and keep bold commitments that match their own determination.
While leaders struggle to find a political solution to the crisis, the best hope for Syria’s future is right here, waiting on the school steps. Five years into the conflict, young refugees stand ready to rebuild and reclaim the future for themselves and for Syria. Education is the most important investment we can make in Syria’s children, the country’s future and stability in the region.
The path is clear and the resources available. It will come down to a matter of choice.
We cannot afford to lose a whole generation of Syrian children. And they refuse to be a generation lost.
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