Education is the most powerful tool a child can be given. It is the foundation of self-reliance, the gateway to opportunity, and one of the most effective means of breaking the cycle of poverty. Yet for hundreds of millions of children around the world, access to quality education remains out of reach, not because of a lack of intelligence or ambition, but because of poverty, conflict, displacement, and inequality.
Islamic Relief South Africa, working alongside Islamic Relief Worldwide, is committed to ensuring that every child has access to a quality education. We build and rehabilitate schools, train teachers, supply school equipment, run mobile classroom programmes, and support children with special educational needs. We believe that when you educate a child, you change not only their life but the lives of everyone around them, for generations to come.
Read! In the Name of your Lord Who has created. Created man from a clinging substance. Read! And your Lord is the Most Generous. Who has taught by the pen. Taught man that which he knew not.
Surah Al-Alaq, 96:1-5
The Scale of the Education Crisis
The global education crisis is one of the most urgent challenges facing humanity. Conflict, poverty, and displacement have pushed millions of children out of classrooms, and for those who do attend school, the quality of education they receive is often far below what they need to build a stable future. The figures below, sourced from Islamic Relief UK and UNICEF, reflect the scale of the challenge.
61M
primary-school-age children are out of school (UNICEF)
600M+
children cannot attain minimum proficiency levels in reading and mathematics
250M
children across the globe are lacking basic literacy skills
285,000+
people supported by Islamic Relief’s education programmes across 21 countries