In eastern DRC, newly built classrooms and an Education Cannot Wait programme offer more than learning, they are protection and recovery for tens of thousands of displaced children.

Years of conflict have closed schools, exposed children to recruitment and gender‑based violence, and driven 6.4m children out of education nationally.

The two‑year US$10m initiative in Ituri emphasises safe infrastructure, teacher training, psychosocial support and catch‑up learning, measures that help stabilise communities and reduce recruitment into armed groups. In fragile states, schooling is both social investment and security policy.

Sources: UNICEF field reporting; Education Cannot Wait programme details; reporting from Ituri, May 15, 2026.