In the wake of severe flooding across Bangladesh, India, China and Nepal, Save the Children warns that years of development progress could be eroded if education isn’t prioritised during the emergency response.
Intense flooding in South and East Asia has so far affected almost 40 million people since June, including approximately 10 million children, bursting riverbanks, washing away homes and destroying crucial infrastructure.
The combined death toll between these four countries alone has risen beyond 700, including 480 in India, 160 in China, 50 in Nepal and 21 in Bangladesh.
Almost 1,600 schools have been forced to close in Bangladesh, either due to storm damage or because they have been repurposed as emergency shelters for the displaced, leaving some 319,000 children missing out on vital education. At least 3.7 million people have also been impacted by the flooding across 19 districts, with over 16,000 houses completely washed away.
“There’s a chance that some children who are unable to go to school for extended periods might never go back, particularly if the impact of the disaster on their family’s assets results in pressure on them to earn money for the household,” said Michael McGrath, Save the Children’s Acting Asia Regional Director.
“Children’s schooling needs to be prioritised across the region in the aftermath of the flooding, and Save the Children is ready to support the provincial, regional and national education authorities to ensure that schools reopen as soon as possible.
“This will include setting up temporary classrooms while damaged school buildings are being repaired or schools are being evacuated, replacing damaged educational materials, getting children back in the classroom and supporting students’ psychosocial needs are also among our key priorities.”
Save the Children is currently responding to floods in India, Bangladesh, China and Nepal. The humanitarian agency has already distributed thousands of relief items to affected families including tarpaulins, hygiene kits, sanitation items and floor mats, as well as setting up safe spaces for children to play and recover.
In China, almost 30 million people have been affected by the floods, and tens of thousands of houses have collapsed – a situation only compounded when Typhoon Nepartak made landfall on July 10, bringing powerful winds and more torrential rains.
In India, more than 5.4 million people have been affected across the country, with Save the Children responding in three of the worst-affected states of Assam, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.
“Nowadays, floods are seen as a chronic problem and are viewed quite differently from other emergencies – so they often no longer attract adequate attention from either the media or donors,” said Thomas Chandy, CEO of Save the Children India.
“Therefore it is critical that we develop better, more effective, long-term resilience solutions to help families to prepare for floods and cope better with the consequences.”
“Save the Children stands ready to respond to the humanitarian needs following Tropical Storm Dianmu if required - rainfall has been relentless in many parts of the region in recent weeks and, with Dianmu now on its way, we must continue preparing for further flood damage,” McGrath added.
Save the Children has a long history responding to humanitarian crises in the region, including flooding in Uttarakhand in 2013, Kashmir in 2014 and south India in 2015 as well as following cyclones Phailin in 2013 and Hudhud in 2014. Save the Children is also still responding to last year’s earthquake in Nepal.