130 million children still out of school in 22 countries

Mar 22, 2025

CONNECTICUT: The COVID-19 pandemic and global climate disasters have left 130 million children out of school in 22 countries, according to Save the Children. Despite the pandemic starting five years ago, many countries are still facing prolonged school closures, with additional disruptions caused by climate-related events like floods and heatwaves.

In the Philippines, for instance, students faced over 520 days of school closures, with ongoing disruptions from extreme weather. Save the Children found that children in countries with longer school shutdowns experienced the most significant learning losses, and between early 2022 and June 2024, 404 million children across 81 countries faced educational disruptions due to the climate crisis.

The organisation warns that climate-related disasters are becoming more frequent, increasing the risk to education, with half of the world’s children now vulnerable. Remote learning, while helpful, is limited by the lack of internet access for two-thirds of school-aged children globally. Save the Children continues to provide educational support and works to strengthen education systems against climate and environmental challenges. --Vatican News