The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has warned that climate-related disasters are increasingly disrupting education across Eastern and Southern Africa, potentially resulting in up to $380 billion in lost future earnings by 2050 if immediate action is not taken.
A new UNICEF and Dalberg report, titled ‘Protecting Children’s Learning Futures: Quantifying Climate-Related Loss and Damage in Eastern and Southern Africa,’ reveals that climate shocks have already caused approximately $1.3 billion in direct damage to schools and teaching infrastructure.
These disruptions have impacted education for approximately 130 million children across the region.
The analysis further estimates that these disruptions have already led to up to $140 billion in lost future earnings, with this figure expected to increase significantly as climate impacts worsen, potentially affecting up to 520 million students in the coming decades.
Children are paying the highest price for a crisis they did not create,’ stated Etleva Kadilli, Regional Director for Eastern and Southern Africa at UNICEF.
‘For the first time, this report demonstrates the extent of climate-related loss and damage to education, yet the impact on children remains largely overlooked in financing decisions. This must change.’
The report highlights how increasingly frequent and severe extreme weather events, including floods, droughts, cyclones, and heatwaves, are destroying school infrastructure, causing prolonged closures, and exacerbating inequality in access to education.
Girls, children with disabilities, and marginalized communities are among those most severely affected.
Case studies from countries including Kenya, Somalia, Mozambique, Ethiopia, and Zambia demonstrate the escalating human and economic impact of climate disruptions on education systems.
In Zambia alone, floods and droughts between 2005 and 2024 disrupted learning for approximately 5 million students and caused $60 million in immediate infrastructure losses, while reducing future earnings by up to $5 billion.
Rural Children Most Affected
The severe 2023-2024 El Niño drought in Southern Africa, among the worst in decades, left nearly 10 million people without reliable food, water, or electricity. Schools were compelled to reduce learning hours, close temporarily, or dismiss students early.
Rural children and girls were disproportionately affected, with many compelled to leave school to support household livelihoods or facing heightened risks of early marriage.
Despite the escalating crisis, education currently receives less than 1.5 percent of global climate finance, leaving school systems vulnerable to recurring cycles of damage and recovery.
The report notes that investing in climate-resilient education infrastructure can yield substantial economic returns, with every $1 invested generating up to $13 through reduced damage, sustained learning continuity, and enhanced long-term productivity.
‘Without greater prioritization in climate finance, education will continue to bear the worst effects of climate impacts, causing repeated disruption,’ Kadilli stated.
‘We must design education systems that anticipate shocks, protect early and foundational learning, and keep schools open. Otherwise, the true cost of climate loss and damage will be measured in lost human potential.’
The warning comes as the board of the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage prepares to meet in Livingstone later this week, where policymakers are expected to discuss strategies to enhance climate resilience and recovery financing across vulnerable regions.
UNICEF is calling on governments, donors, and international climate funds to more thoroughly integrate education into national climate frameworks, apply climate-risk planning to education budgets, and increase dedicated climate financing for schools, especially in regions facing recurring climate shocks.
The agency emphasized that safeguarding education systems is crucial not only for protecting children’s rights but also for maintaining long-term economic growth and development across Africa.
