Schools closed for more than 168 million children globally for almost a year

Schools for more than 168 million children globally have been completely closed for almost an entire year due to COVID-19 lockdowns, according to new data released today by UNICEF.

The data also shows that around 214 million children globally or 1 in 7 have missed more than three-quarters of their in-person learning.

Countries in Latin America and the Caribbean have been the worst effected with schools in 9 countries remaining closed for almost an entire year, impacting 37 million school children.

Of the 14 countries, Panama has kept schools closed for the most days, followed by El Salvador, Bangladesh, and Bolivia.

Schools in this group have been fully closed, on average, for 158 days, with partially closed found to be on average 28 days.

In Western Europe, schools were found to be fully closed on average 52 days and partially closed 37 days.

More than 888 million children worldwide continue to face disruptions to their education due to full and partial school closures, according to the data.

As we approach the one-year mark of the COVID-19 pandemic, we are again reminded of the catastrophic education emergency worldwide lockdowns have created," said UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore.

With every day that goes by, children unable to access in-person schooling fall further and further behind, with the most marginalized paying the heaviest price.

We cannot afford to move into year two of limited or even no in-school learning for these children. No effort should be spared to keep schools open, or prioritise them in reopening plans.

This data comes as UNICEF today unveiled the Pandemic Classroom, a model classroom made up of 168 empty desks, each desk representing the million children living in countries where schools have been almost entirely closed, at the United Nations Headquarters in New York.

We do not want shuttered doors and closed buildings to obscure the fact that our childrens futures are being put on indefinite pause. This installation is a message to governments: we must prioritize reopening schools, and we must prioritize reopening them better than they were before," said Fore.