Partnering for quality education in emergencies
On 4 February 2016, the United Kingdom, Germany, Kuwait, Norway and the United Nations co-hosted a conference in London to discuss the situation in Syria and the region. Over USD11 billion was pledged by world leaders to help support Syrians, and 1.7 million refugee children in host communities will be given quality education by the end of the school year, with equal access for boys and girls.
As part of its commitment to becoming a socially responsible company, NRS Relief’s parent company, NRS International, continues to respond to the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Syria and other global challenges by providing core relief products for vulnerable populations. Recently, NRS International joined the Global Business Coalition for Education‘s list of private companies that together have committed USD 75 million to support the education of one million Syrian refugees in Lebanon, Jordan, and Turkey.
The Alseeraj mobile clinic, which was funded by NRS International’s Pakistan-based charitable foundation, visited a camp school in eastern Lebanon in May 2015.
As a member of the GBC-Education, NRS International has pledged its support to Syrians and the region by donating temporary learning spaces and child-friendly products for refugee education. To date, NRS International has provided health care to 7,800 Syrian refugees in eastern Lebanon camps, and is now focusing its efforts on education.
Through collaborations that span industries, more companies have come forward to offer their support by contributing educational content, digital delivery, skills for employability, crucial infrastructure, and teacher training, among other programming, in direct response to obstacles identified by regional governments. These new partnerships have been announced by GBC-Education at the latest Syria conference, where GBC-Education convened private sector partners, UN agencies, and key donors. Their effort builds off of a $50 million commitment made by over 50 companies and partners in late January.
Impactful partnerships between the private sector, non-governmental organisations, donors, and multilateral agencies are critical to the global education development effort, especially because education only receives 1.3 percent of overall humanitarian aid. The private sector’s magnified voice also marks a shift in the development dialogue, since traditionally, businesses have been omitted from conversations within the international community.
“With the recently launched Sustainable Development Goals, and the World Humanitarian Summit just around the corner, I believe that GBC-Education and its partners can build a strong platform upon which access to quality education for children most in need can be accelerated,” Managing Director of NRS International, said in a statement published on the GBC-Education’s new portal.
By leveraging existing partnerships which have demonstrated success, GBC-Education member companies are showcasing the strength of collaboration by leading such efforts. Companies are also utilising their core business assets to address the crisis by teaming up with international NGOs.
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Related article: NRS International joins businesses in supporting education of Syrian refugee children
