Authors: Dr. Faiza Hassan and Petra Heusser*

The foreign aid cuts that have dominated global headlines this year are not just statistics – they have real world impact, not least when it comes to education. Millions of children and youth who are living through conflict, displacement or other crises now risk missing out on schooling, despite the extraordinary efforts of local actors to keep their learning alive. As world leaders are gathering in New York for the UN General Assembly, we need decisive action to ensure these students do not become a lost generation. This requires not only ensuring continued funding but also placing local leadership at the heart of these efforts.

Take the situation in the camps that house more than 1.2 million Rohingya refugees in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, for example. Earlier this year, international and local education actors had to shut down thousands of learning centres due to an abrupt drop in funding. As a result, almost half a million girls and boys are now without access to any form of education, putting their learning, development and futures at risk. There are already signs that these out-of-school children are being forced into child labour or early marriage instead.

Sadly, this is far from an isolated case.

By the end of 2024, one in six children – more than 473 million – lived in or were fleeing conflict zones, while more than 242 million children saw their schooling disrupted by climate change. More than 85 million children living through emergencies are out of school globally. Now, with aid budgets shrinking, the situation is set to worsen. Projections show that total official development assistance for education could fall by USD3.2 billion by 2026, an almost 25 percent drop from 2023 – potentially forcing another six million children out of school just over the coming year. In emergency settings, the funding situation is equally dire. Earlier this year, humanitarian appeals were also slashed ­- in some countries such as Sudan and Chad by up to 90 percent – leaving 33 million people in need outside the scope of aid planning.

Education is a fundamental right, and when crises hit, the first responders are communities themselves: teachers, parents, and local organisations. They are the ones keeping learning alive in the most difficult conditions. When we speak to partners who are on the frontlines of providing education in crisis settings, they often point to remarkable resilience, where local actors are stepping up to fill the gaps left by global funding cuts. But they are also facing very real challenges. Many have had to close schools, lay off or reduce salaries to teachers, or cram in more students into ever-expanding classes. Some have already had to close down their operations completely.

This is devastating not only for children and youth themselves who miss out on schooling, but for their wider communities and societies. Education has positive ripple effects far beyond individual students – it is the best tool to improve a nation’s health or economy, to build peace, or to mitigate and adapt to climate change. Education is one of the most cost-effective investments leaders – whether in government, civil society, or philanthropy – can make.

In this sense, it is crucial that education is prioritised in the difficult conversations on funding amid reduced foreign aid. At its core, this is not so much a question of resources, but of political will. Political leaders need to step up and champion the rights of children and youth in emergencies.

The crisis, however, is also a chance to rethink how education in emergencies is delivered. Rather than treating local actors – governments, local civil society, teachers – as implementers with little say, we need to recognise their leadership as essential. They know their communities best and often provide education more effectively and efficiently than international actors. Their leadership is not optional; it is essential. Financing should reinforce national systems rather than bypass them, enabling governments and communities to build resilience instead of scrambling after each new shock. Local actors must be given greater access to funding, leading coordination, and have a decisive voice in how scarce resources are spent.

In 2016, humanitarian actors committed to promoting such local leadership through an agreement called the Grand Bargain. So far, it has unfortunately mostly remained a paper promise – but this year’s funding cuts is an opportunity to turn it into reality.

As the same actors debate how to reform a system reeling from funding cuts, we need to stop asking how to retrofit existing structures to make space for these local actors. Instead, we should imagine what a system would look like if it were rebuilt from the ground up by the communities we aim to serve?

This is not a question of promoting local leadership for the sake of it, but about recognising that the most sustainable responses to crises will always start locally. It is a question of ensuring that millions of children and youth are given the best opportunity to grow, learn and prosper.

Education, and its transformative power, must prioritised on the political agenda at this year’s UNGA. The futures of millions of children depend on it.

* Petra Heusser, Executive Director of the Geneva Global Hub for Education in Emergencies

* Dr. Faiza Hassan, Director of the Inter-agency Network for Education in Emergencies