In support of COVID-19 Global Education Coalition Launched by UNESCO Keeping girls in the picture Youth advocacy toolkit Join the campaign to ensure #LearningNeverStopsTable of contents 1. Campaign overview 1.1 Keeping girls in the picture ................................................................................... 1.2 Education in the COVID-19 era ............................................................................. 2. Who are we advocating for? 2.1 Girls whose schools are still closed .................................................................... 2.2 Girls whose schools have reopened ................................................................... 2.3 Girls who were out of school before COVID-19 ............................................ 3. Where to begin? 3.1 What is advocacy? ..................................................................................................... 3.2 Ask the right questions .......................................................................................... 3.3 Set your objectives .................................................................................................... 3.4 Map your resources and needs ............................................................................. 3.5 Content guide ............................................................................................................. 3.5.1 High impact facts .................................................................................... 3.5.2 Continued learning ................................................................................. 3.5.3 Did you know? ............................................................................................. 3.5.4 The main calls to action for this campaign ......................................... 3.5.5 Engaging questions ................................................................................... 3.5.6 Other messages .......................................................................................... 4. How can you get involved? 4.1 How to reach your representatives? ................................................................... 4.2 Raising public awareness ........................................................................................ 4.3 Community leadership and teamwork .............................................................. 4.4 Self-care ........................................................................................................................ 4.5 Safety precautions .................................................................................................... 5. Advocacy tips 5.1 Persuasive storytelling ............................................................................................. 5.2 Public speaking ............................................................................................................ 5.3 Interviewing ................................................................................................................ 04 05 22 23 24 25 26 09 10 12 13 15 15 16 17 19 20 20 28 29 30 07 07 07 32 ............................................................. 6. UNESCO’s Global Education Coalition 6.1 UNESCO’s Global Education Coalition1 Campaign overview © W or ld B an k/ Kh as ar S an da gCampaign overview | 04 1.1 Keeping girls in the picture Every girl has the right to a quality education. Yet, around the world,130 million were out of school before COVID-19. Now, the pandemic threatens to halt the education of more than 11 million girls. If there are fewer girls in the classroom, it will mean fewer women who can make valuable social and economic contributions to their communities later on. If girls lose out, we all lose out. We must ‘keep girls in the picture’ – we must make sure that all girls are learning and that #LearningNeverStops N at al y Re in ch /S hu tt er st oc k. co mMost governments around the world have temporarily closed educational institutions in an attempt to contain the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. For many girls, continuing to learn while schools are closed depends on access to the internet and mobile phones, as well as having digital skills. Online learning platforms were used for primary and secondary education in about 55% of low income, 73% of lower middle income and 93% of upper middle income countries. The share of households with internet access at home was 47% in developing countries and 12% in the least developed countries in 2019, compared with 87% in developed countries. 1.2 Education in the COVID-19 era 64% of low income countries used radio to support continuity of learning for primary education, compared to 42% of upper middle income countries. Low and middle income countries are at a far more disadvantaged starting point for an effective transition to online learning platforms. In least developed countries, only 52% of the population has access to electricity. At country level, the proportion of the population with access to electricity is only 12% in Chad, 14% in Burkina Faso, 18% in Niger, 19% in DRC, and 26% in Liberia. 74% of lower middle income countries used television programmes to support continuity of learning for primary education, compared to 36% of low income countries. At the peak of the school closure period in April 2020, over 90% of the global student population was affected in 200 countries. That’s over 1.5 billion learners, including more than 760 million girls. Lessons from the past – such as with Ebola – have shown that health crises can leave many behind, in particular the poorest girls, many of whom may not return to school. About 40% of low and lower middle income countries have not taken any measures to support learners at risk of exclusion during the COVID-19 crisis. Children and youth living in poor and remote areas, with disabilities, or from linguistic minorities are most affected. Campaign overview | 05Who are we advocating for? 2 © U N /M ar co D or m in o2.1 Girls whose schools are still closed 2.2 Girls whose schools have reopened 2.3 Girls who were out of school before COVID-19 While schools are closed, it is crucial that girls are protected from harm and able to continue learning. Learning continuity is highly dependent on online access and digital skills. Low-tech learning approaches must be used to ensure girls’ continued learning, or a blended approach using no-tech, low- tech and tech solutions. Furthermore, for many girls, school offers social support, vital services and protection. We must secure their safety, health and continued learning while schools are closed. Distance learning programmes, including radio and TV campaigns, and advocacy efforts can continue to challenge the negative social norms, and provide information on available services. In countries where schools already reopened, some girls may not have returned. Girls will be less likely to return to school when they are needed at home for income-generating and caring responsibilities, or if their families can no longer afford school fees and other a ssociated costs such as uniforms, school materials, and transportation. Some may be forced into an early marriage or resort to transactional sex to cover basic needs. Some may face early or unintended pregnancy. These risks will be heightened for learners living in disadvantaged households, crisis-affected areas and places with limited supervision of children. Let’s make sure that every girl can return to school safely. Before COVID-19, around 130 million girls were already not in school. In low-income countries, 69 young women completed secondary school for every 100 young men. In at least 20 countries, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa, fewer than 1% of poor rural women complete secondary school. Poverty hits girls hardest. In low-income countries, at most 60 girls from the lowest income quintile are enrolled in upper secondary school for every 100 boys in this income bracket. This campaign is not only responding to the COVID-19 crisis, it’s using it as a window of opportunity to promote innovation, strengthen the resilience and gender responsiveness of education systems, and close gender gaps and other inequalities in and through education. Who are we advocating for? | 07 Get started – help us bring equality to education and beyond! Who are we advocating for? © U N ES CO /N is ha S ha h3 Where to begin? © U N /M ilt on G ra ntRaising awareness and promoting a belief is advocacy work. It can be done at different levels to influence decision-makers like local counsellors, the government, a board of directors, educators and people who invest in and fund projects. Advocacy means influencing decisions that are made by leaders. It tries to ensure that all people in society are able to: Where to begin? | 09 3.1 What is advocacy? Have their voice heard on issues that are important to them. Protect and promote their rights. Have their views and wishes considered when decisions are being made about their lives.1. Was girls’ education interrupted by COVID-19? 2. Have girls been able to continue learning remotely? 3. Have girls been able to participate in remote learning to the same extent as boys? 4. Will there be catch-up lessons or other measures to address potential learning loss? How will these address girls’ specific needs? Where to begin? | 10 3.2 Ask the right questions © U N /S ha re ef S ar ha n5. Have schools reopened? 6. Have both boys and girls returned to school? 7. Do you know any girls who are at risk of not returning to school? 8. What has been the impact of school closures on girls in your community? The answers to these questions can help determine where to begin with your advocacy and how to set your goals. If there are girls in your immediate community who have not been able to learn remotely while schools have been closed, or if schools have reopened but some girls have not been able to return, your advocacy can help to establish plans that address girls’ needs and ensure their safe return to school. Your advocacy shouldn’t stop until every girl is able to get an education. Where to begin? | 11 © W or ld B an k/ Li an g Q ia ngSetting objectives helps you ensure that your advocacy is working. Objectives should be specific, measurable, realistic and time-bound. Understand your key areas of strength and expertise, and base your advocacy efforts around these areas. Objectives will be guided by the particular demands you have for each target audience. Feel free to adapt the table below to your needs to help you determine your objectives. Remember, you can always come back and tweak your objectives along the way! Local representatives/ policy makers/ education officials Local media/ radio/journalists TARGET AUDIENCE ASKS POTENTIAL OBJECTIVES Girls’ parents or caregivers Send girls back to school, as soon as it is safe. If schools are closed, encourage your girls to keep learning by other means. Keep your girls safe while they are out of school. Influence other members of your family and community to get girls back into education. Reach X number of parents by Y date through events, canvassing, distributing pamphlets and launching a social media campaign. Engage X households to invest in learning for their girls. Develop COVID education response and recovery plans that consider girls’ needs and ensure their return to school. Write letters to X number of local representatives explaining the issue and requesting a meeting. Meet with at least one representative and persuade them to supports girls’ education in the COVID-19 context. Find and tell stories about girls wishing to return to learning, and how education can transform girls’ lives. Expose the risks to girls while they are out of school (e.g.unwanted pregnancy, early marriage, violence and abuse). Promote ways to keep girls safe while they are out of school. Amplify the voices of marginalized and excluded girls who are not in education. Get at least one story published in the local newspaper. Get invited to do at least one radio interview. Get a televised news station to talk about the campaign at least once. 3.3 Set your objectives Where to begin? | 12Advocacy requires resources. It is important to consider the various resources you will need in order to achieve your objectives. You can make a table like the one below to map out your resources, figure out what you might be missing and develop a budget. If you find that your resources are insufficient, you will need to find ways to fill the gaps. A detailed budget with clear descriptions of the costs (e.g. salaries, overhead, events, communications) needed to implement your strategy can help you raise funds. Funds People Partners CURRENT AMOUNT How many supporters, team members and leaders does your campaign have? What partners (organizations or government agencies) are involved with the campaign? How much funding is needed to reach objectives? Are there any gaps in experience or skills missing that would be needed to reach objectives? What other partners should be involved? What are some organizations or partners that could contribute funds to the campaign? Could you hold a training session to cover missing skills? How can you get more people involved? Are there other potential stakeholders that can help, such as donors and influencers? RESOURCE How much funding does your campaign currently have? AMOUNT NEEDED POTENTIAL SOURCES Influencers What influential relationships (celebrities, influencers, community leaders, etc.) are at your campaign’s disposal? Are there other potential influencers who could help the campaign? How could you recruit or build a relationship with them? Information Have you done enough research to effectively execute your campaign? Are you missing any information/stories that could be useful to your campaign? How could you source more information or stories to help you get your message across? Where to begin? | 13 3.4 Map your resources and needsWhere to begin? | 14 Organize a fundraising event/campaign Seek support from your local representatives Search for grants from public or private foundations Form partnerships, coalitions and alliances with established advocacy groups to submit joint funding proposals to possible donors Research local organizations that may be willing to support your campaign Potential sources of funding to consider © U N /E sk in de r D eb eb eWhere to begin? | 15 3.5.1 High impact facts (Sources: research from the UN and other organizations that are members of the UNESCO Global Education Coalition.) At the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, over 760 million girls worldwide were out of school. Before COVID-19, 130 million girls were already not in school. UNESCO estimates more than 11 million girls and young women are at risk of not returning to school after COVID-19. The wider impacts of global health crises are hardest for girls. Educated girls are more likely to have better earnings and decent work as women. One additional year of school can increase a women’s earnings by up to 20%. In nine countries, the poorest girls spend less than two years in school (Afghanistan, Benin, Chad, Ethiopia, Guinea, Mali, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Senegal). In Guinea and Pakistan, the poorest girls spend less than one year in school on average. Teaching is often a female profession, particularly in the lower years. Female teachers have positive effects on girls’ enrolment and how well they learn. In countries where there is war or conflict, and for children in refugee camps or who are internally displaced the barriers to getting an education are significant for girls. For example, in Ethiopia and Kenya, for every ten boys, only seven refugee girls are enrolled in primary school and only four girls for every ten boys in secondary school. The following information can be used to craft content and messaging for your campaign 3.5 Content guideWhere to begin? | 16 3.5.2 Continued learning For many girls, continuing to learn while schools are closed depends on access to the internet and mobile phones, and having digital skills. Distance learning using radio and TV programmes is a really useful and important way to keep girls learning, particularly in low-tech contexts. Around 826 million students do not have a computer at home and an 706 million lack internet access. Even in settings with adequate infrastructure and connectivity, girls are less likely to have access to digital devices than boys. In some countries, parents give girls access to computers later than boys, and their access is more limited. If girls have digital skills and access to the internet it will help them access distance learning materials safely. Countries must make sure that girls can continue to get access to learning, by changing their policies if necessary and also by doing things like organising catch-up courses and offering financial support. For more messages on what countries can do to take action to ensure girls’ continuity of learning and return to school, see the Building Back Equal: Girls Back to School Guide. It provides targeted recommendations to ensure continuity of learning while schools are closed, and to establish comprehensive, timely and evidence-based plans for reopening schools in a way that is safe, gender-responsive and child-friendly, and meets the needs of the most marginalised girls. It emphasises an approach to ‘build back equal’ through gender-responsive measures that transform education systems, prioritise resilience, and address the key bottlenecks and barriers to girls’ education.Here are some Did you know? (“DYK”) statements you can use in your content, which show how important it is that girls get an education. (Sources: all these ‘Did you know?’ (DYK) statements come from research from the UN and other organizations that are members of the UNESCO Global Education Coalition.) Where to begin? | 17 Mother and child deaths “DYK” that if all girls globally completed primary education, it would have a positive effect when they become mothers later in life, and would reduce maternal deaths, saving 98,000 lives every year? “DYK” that in sub-Saharan Africa, if all girls completed primary education, it would have a positive effect when they become mothers later in life, and would reduce maternal deaths, saving almost 50,000 lives every year? “DYK” that if all women had a secondary education, fewer babies and children would die, saving 3 million lives every year?Impact on early pregnancy: “DYK” that 10% fewer girls under 17 would become pregnant in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia if they all had a primary education. “DYK” that during the Ebola crisis in West Africa, school closures led to increases in early and forced marriages, and sexual abuse. Adolescent pregnancy increased by up to 65%. There is a risk of this happening again during the COVID-19 crisis. Right to education “DYK” that education is a global human right, protected by the law, and must be guaranteed by each country? This means that the law says that every girl has the right to education. 3.5.3 Did you know?Earning an income “DYK” that secondary education increases girls’ chances of earning an income outside of the home? “DYK” just one more year of school can increase a girl’s earnings, when she is an adult, by up to 20%? Access to computers and the internet “DYK” that 4 out of 5 of learners in sub-Saharan Africa lack internet access? “DYK” that women are much less likely than men to know how to use computers for basic purposes? National prosperity “DYK” that some countries could gain more than US$1 billion a year if they educated girls to the same level as boys? “DYK” that Africa as a whole could become richer by US$316 billion in the next five years, if each country makes advances in women’s equality, including access to education? Where to begin? | 18Return to school Make sure girls are not missing from school. If girls are missing from school, find them, find out why, and bring them back. When schools re-open after COVID-19, every girl must be in school - it is her right! This crisis isn’t over until every girl returns to learning. For girls, school is a lifeline and a key to success. Support girls’ safe return to school. For more practical ‘asks’ on changes needed to ensure girls’ continuity of learning and return to school, and broader systems to change to ‘build back equal,’ see Building Back Equal: Girls Back to School Guide. Continue learning Make sure girls don’t miss out on learning. If schools remain closed, help girls to continue learning by all other means possible. Close the gap between boys and girls in access to computers, mobile phones and the internet. Promote digital access and skills for girls. Promote other ways to reach girls with education, such as radio, TV, SMS and local learning clusters. 3.5.4 The main calls to action for this campaign Where to begin? | 19Where to begin? | 20 Education is vital to improving girls’ future health, well-being, learning potential and societal contribution. Narrowing the gender divide in education is good for everyone. We cannot let a health crisis set back the progress that has been made in ensuring every girl gets an education. For many girls, education is their key to success. Being at school offers social support, vital services, nutrition and protection from violence and exploitation. Where girls are needed at home for income-generating and caring responsibilities, or their families can no longer afford school fees, girls are less likely to return to school. We can’t let this happen. Governments and education providers must preserve female teachers’ salaries, benefits employment, so they can continue to have a positive impact on girls’ education and outcomes. Different factors affect adolescent girls’ education, including sexual and reproductive health, social and protection issues. For girls to succeed, these issues must be addressed too. 3.5.6 Other messages How are you ensuring girls’ safety, health and continued learning? How are you ensuring that girls can return to school? How are you ensuring girls’ right to education? 3.5.5 Engaging questions4 How can you get involved? © U N ES CO /I A th an as ia di sUsing the stats and facts above, Building Back Equal: Girls Back to School Guide, along with your own personal experience to make the issue as local as possible, write a letter to your local representative explaining why you’re concerned about girls not returning to school and how keeping girls in school is a benefit to everyone. Make it clear that you are their constituent (include your full address) and request a meeting to discuss the issue. Mention your age - as a young person you have a powerful voice! If you haven’t heard back within two weeks, call their office to follow up with them. Once you have arranged a time to visit your local representative, make sure you are well prepared with a plan for how you want the conversation to go and make sure your plan includes a clear ask of what you want your local representative to do. How can you get involved? | 22 Ensure that girls are consulted and can contribute to decisions about school reopening through regular feedback mechanisms, and their engagement in decision-making and planning processes. Promote an integrated and coordinated approach that addresses girls’ holistic education, health and protection needs. Ensure continued access to learning and promote practical solutions such as outreach, catch-up courses, accelerated learning and financial support. Support policies to improve girls’ digital skills and access to the internet and digital tools, to help them access distance learning materials safely. Female teachers have positive effects on girls’ enrolment and improve their learning outcomes. Promote and preserve female teachers’ salaries, benefits employment, so they can continue to have a positive impact on girls’ education and outcomes. Adopt appropriate distance learning practices in contexts where digital solutions are less accessible, using low-tech and gender- responsive approaches. Ensure programme scheduling and learning structures are flexible and allow self-paced learning so as not to deter girls who often disproportionately shoulder the burden of care. Send reading and writing materials home and use radio and television broadcasts to reach the most marginalized. Remove discriminatory school policies that prevent pregnant and married girls from attending school, and ensure all girls’ right to education. Write what you would like to see them do, for example: 4.1 How to reach your representatives?Engage your community to raise awareness and build support for the campaign with the following tactics: How can you get involved? | 23 Social media campaign This is a great way to make sure your message reaches the public. Use the campaign hashtag (#LearningNeverStops) and/or create your own. Ask people to use it as well, perhaps on a designated day or time. You can also ask people to alter their profile pictures using a frame you create that is associated with the campaign. Contact and request meetings Influencers and community leaders can help support the cause. Organise a performance or public exhibition This can be a creative and fun way to raise awareness and get people excited. Petition The more signatures you get, the better you can show that your campaign has lots of support. 4.2 Raising public awareness Contact media Get your local newspaper or radio station involved and raise the profile of your campaign.Identify and develop leaders among the people who want to support the campaign. They can help you raise awareness, plan, and take action so that you can build even more momentum. Consider the types of leaders and skill sets needed for your campaign. How can you get involved? | 24 Community representatives and affected individuals (e.g. pregnant girls and young mothers). It’s important that people who are most affected by the problem are part of the decision-making process. 4.3 Community leadership and teamworkInvesting time, energy and emotion into a campaign can be stressful. Here are some tips to take care of yourself throughout the process. How can you get involved? | 25 Establish boundaries How much time, energy, and resources are you willing and able to contribute? Be aware of your stress levels and be clear about your capacity with your fellow campaigners. Encourage them to do the same. Take breaks At times it feels like you can never do enough, but scheduling time off is an important way to rest, restore and ensure your advocacy is the best it can be when you’re back to campaigning. Celebrate Advocacy can be hard work, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be fun. Finding reasons to celebrate along the way is a form of self-care. Take care of your body Good physical health promotes good mental health – make sure you and your team are well hydrated, aren’t skipping meals or sleep, and exercising when possible! Disconnect The internet can provide an endless stream of information and discussion about the issues you are advocating for, but that doesn’t mean you should be reading the news or debating on social media 24/7. It’s important to disconnect from the issues, put your phone down and be present in your life. Designate Identify wellness leaders who can take responsibility for checking in with people, ensuring access to water, and bringing first aid materials to events or activities. 4.4 Self-careProtect your personal information. Your computer, phone, and sensitive digital documents (like contact lists and phone trees) should be password-protected. Be mindful about where and how often you share your location on social media. Being an advocate means communicating publicly and seeking to persuade your audience on potentially contentious issues. Some advocates may find themselves targeted by unwanted attention. It is thus important to take precautions in order to lessen the risk of being threatened, stalked or assaulted. Please also be sure to follow your local health authority’s guidance regarding COVID-19. How can you get involved? | 26 Avoid walking alone at night or around areas you are not familiar with and that might be dangerous. 4.5 Safety precautions5 Advocacy tips © U N /T ob in Jo ne sFrame the issue Find a topic that directly affects your audience (their family, job, community, etc.). If speaking to a representative, conducting some research on their views and history beforehand, as well as being a good listener and hearing out their concerns, can help with framing the issue correctly. Get personal If possible, share how your own life experiences have led you to fight for this issue. You can also share the personal stories of girls/families you’ve encountered. Keep it simple Try to avoid using too much jargon – basic, heartfelt language makes it easier for your audience to relate to the happenings of a story. Establish empathy Try to elicit an emotional response from your audience by understanding the values you share, what issues matter to them and how these can be solved (e.g. discussing the struggles that girls who are out of school face later on in life, and how badly they need their education). Back your stories with data Audiences may not be moved by statistics alone, but when they are used to complement stories, people realize how meaningful they are. Furthermore, remember to connect your stories to the broader context of the issue. End stories with a call to action When calls to action are directly connected to stories, people will feel more compelled to support them. Some examples: We hope you’ll support girls’ return to school, so that girls like <protagonist of your story> can reach their full potential. Or: Please support girls’ continued education, so that no girl ever has to go through <protagonist of your story’s> experience ever again. In addition to data and statistics, it is important to use stories and storytelling in order to sway opinions and persuade your opposition. Advocacy tips | 28 5.1 Persuasive storytelling © U N /B ik em E kb er za deConsider your audience Keep track of time Smile and breathe Don’t be condescending Express gratitude Don’t be a robot Don’t ramble Practice Consider body language Use language that is easy for them to understand and relate to. Know ahead of time how much should be allotted for questions and answers and when you have five minutes left. It’s okay to be nervous. Public speaking is feared by most people. Pause and take a deep breath occasionally if you need to. It sounds a little silly, but it works! Especially when responding to opposition, you’ll sway more opinions by explaining your counterpoints calmly and in a posi- tive tone than by getting angry and appearing to lecture them. Thank your audience for hearing you out. If your words and mannerisms sound memorized or rehearsed, they lose much of their effectiveness. Your arguments and main points should be planned and practiced in advance, but they should not be rigid formulas committed to memory. Stay with one or two clear points at a time. Speak out loud with a recording device or video camera and then watch yourself to see how you can improve. If you are feeling brave, practice in front of a friend or family member and ask for feedback. Fidgeting, crossing your arms, hiding your hands, or putting your hands in your pockets is a sign of nervousness. Gesturing with your hands is useful but don’t overdo it. 5.2 Public speakingYou’ll want to ask some questions beforehand to ensure the interview goes as well as possible: Will it be live or pre-recorded? Where will the interview take place and how long will it last? What sort of questions will be asked? You can even ask for a list of suggested questions. Who will be conducting the interview? Maybe you can research your interviewer. With these questions answered you can prepare for the interview properly: Go back to the key messages listed above – the most important things you want the audience to know. Prepare some responses to their questions. Get comfortable saying your key messages and responses out loud – practice makes perfect. When the interview is taking place: Be clear – use language that anyone will be able to understand. Use statistics, examples and stories. Have key messages and details (dates/venues/times if you’re promoting key events or deadlines) written down to refer to. Don’t say anything you wouldn’t want to see in print – nothing is off the record. Be confident and try to relax and enjoy the experience! Articulate your words clearly. Avoid letting the tone of your voice get lower at the end of a phrase. See public speaking tips above for more. If your awareness-raising has gone well and you’ve been invited for an interview on your local media outlet, check out these tips: Advocacy tips | 30 5.3 Interviewing6 UNESCO’s Global Education Coalition © U N ES CO \A th an as ia di sUNESCO is the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. UNESCO’s programmes contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals defined in Agenda 2030, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2015. In March 2020, UNESCO established the Global Education Coalition to safeguard learning for all amid the COVID-19 crisis. The Coalition has three flagships to support concerted action including one on connectivity, one on teachers and one on gender. The Gender Flagship is spearheading this campaign to promote girls’ continued learning during school closures and girls’ return to schools once these re- open. This is part of broader efforts aiming to address the gender dimensions of the COVID-19 school crisis and safeguard progress made on gender equality in education in recent decades. The focus is on: • Understanding and addressing possible gender gaps in the engagement with, and learning outcomes from, distance learning opportunities during school closures. • Addressing the cross-cutting health, protection, nutrition and education issues linked to disease outbreaks that negatively impact on girls’ and boys’ continuity of learning and return to school. • Making sure that boys and girls are re-enrolled in school and education programmes after the confinement has ended and that potential learning gaps are closed. • Building back better, strengthening education systems to be gender-transformative, more equitable and more resilient based on lessons learned from COVID-19. The following organizations are supporting the Gender Flagship’s efforts: The All-Africa Student Union, APO Group, Code.org, Girls Not Brides, the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, the Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE), the Girls Opportunity Alliance of the Obama Foundation, Global Affairs Canada, the Global Campaign for Education, the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), Imagine Worldwide, the Inter-Agency Network for Education in Emergencies, JA Worldwide, KPMG, Malala Fund, Micro:bit Educational Foundation, Oxfam, Plan International, Save the Children International, Technovation, Uber, the UK’s Department for International Development, the United Nations Girls’ Education Initiative (UNGEI), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the World Food Programme, and World Vision International. The Gender Flagship provides a platform for United Nations agencies, international organizations, the private sector, civil society representatives and Member States interested and committed to the promotion of gender equality, and girls’ and women’s empowerment in and through education. Interested organizations are invited to contact UNESCO to discuss what support, tools or services they can offer to address the gender dimensions of COVID-related school closures and ensure that #LearningNeverStops. http://on.unesco.org/girlsbacktoschool Contact us to support the Gender Flagship at: [email protected]. 6.1 UNESCO’s Global Education Coalition UNESCO’s Global Education Coalition | 32 In support of COVID-19 Global Education Coalition Launched by UNESCOPublished 2020 by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization 7, place de Fontenoy, 75352 Paris 07 SP, France © UNESCO 2020 This document is available in Open Access under the Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 IGO (CC-BY-SA 3.0 IGO) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/igo/). By using the content of this document, the users accept to be bound by the terms of use of the UNESCO Open Access Repository (http://www.unesco.org/open-access/terms-use-ccbysa-en). The designations employed and the presentation of material throughout this document do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of UNESCO concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The ideas and opinions expressed in this document are those of the authors; they are not necessarily those of UNESCO and do not commit the Organization. Front cover photo - © UN Photo/Marco Dormino Back cover photo - © World Bank/Dominic Chavez Designed by Rooftop Production ED /ESC/IG E/2020/05In support of COVID-19 Global Education Coalition Launched by UNESCO © D om in ic C ha ve zW or ld B an k http://on.unesco.org/girlsbacktoschool #LearningNeverStops