The armed conflict that has been rocking the Capo Delgado region in northern Mozambique for several years is threatening the education system and disrupting children’s schooling, the Global Coalition to Protect Education from Attack (GCPEA) warned this week in a new report.
“Between 2022 and 2023, Mozambique has seen an alarming increase in the use of schools for military purposes,” said the Coalition, which brings together United Nations agencies and non-governmental organizations working in the field of education.
Noting that at least 12 schools have been used for military purposes in the past two years, she added that this period was marked by six incidents in which schools were damaged or destroyed during armed violence.
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In 2021, the United Nations said more than 220 schools in Mozambique had been attacked since 2017, the year that saw the outbreak of insurgent attacks in the north of the country.
According to the GCPEA, non-state armed groups were responsible for most attacks on schools, including arson and the use of firearms and explosives.
In 2015, Mozambique endorsed the Safe Schools Declaration, a political agreement committing signatory countries to prevent and respond to attacks on students, teachers and schools.
However, violence in the northern part of the southern African country has shown that schools are far from being a safe place for many communities.
With MAP
