6-year-old Fatima, from Khartoum stands in an empty classroom at the UNICEF supported safe learning space in Kassala state, Sudan
This article is published in association with United Nations.
The number of children and young people out of school worldwide has climbed for the seventh consecutive year, reaching 273 million, according to a new report from the UN education agency, UNESCO.
The 2026 Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report finds that one in six school-age children are excluded from education, while only two in three complete secondary school.
Progress has slowed across most regions since 2015, with conflict and population growth among the main drivers.
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“Progress in keeping children in school has slowed across almost every region,” the report notes, with sub-Saharan Africa particularly affected.
In conflict zones, the situation is even more acute, with millions more children out of school than official figures capture.
Gains registered too
Despite these setbacks, UNESCO highlighted significant gains over the past two decades. Global enrolment has risen sharply, with “more than 25 additional children accessing school every minute” since the year 2000.
Some countries have made remarkable progress, slashing out-of-school rates and expanding access to all levels of education.
However, the report cautions that no single policy can tackle exclusion, urging tailored approaches and sustained investment to ensure all children can learn.
Ukraine: Massive drone and missile attack reported
UN human rights monitors reported on Wednesday that Russia launched a massive and deadly new wave of attacks in Ukraine two nights ago.
According to the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU), on 23 to 24 March Russia launched “nearly 1,000 drones and dozens of missiles” at Ukrainian cities, killing at least six people and injuring almost 100.
“The attacks damaged residential areas, medical facilities, and energy infrastructure,” the mission said.
Targets included a monastery in the western city of Lviv and a maternity hospital in neighbouring Ivano-Frankivsk region.
Deadly tactic
The UN mission noted that this latest barrage was a repeat of an alarming tactic used by Russia last year that involved firing “powerful, long-range weapons against densely populated areas”, contributing to increased civilian casualties.
It is more than four years since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
More than 15,000 civilian killings have been confirmed, although the true number is likely much higher, according to the UN monitoring mission.
Additionally, 3.7 million people are now internally displaced in areas still controlled by the Kyiv government.
Migratory species in decline
Nearly half of all migratory species that require protection are declining, according to a report by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the World Conservation Monitory Centre.
The figure is up from 44 per cent two years ago. Likewise, species threatened by extinction have also risen, to 24 per cent from 22 per cent previously.
“Protecting these [migratory] species cannot be achieved by any country acting alone. Their survival depends on coordinated international action,” UNEP’s Elizabeth Maruma Mrema told the global conference on the conservation of migratory species (CMS COP15), taking place in Brazil.
Environmental multilateralism works
“At a time of geopolitical tensions and uncertainty, one important truth stands out: environmental multilateralism works,” she said.
“Cooperation to protect biodiversity especially migratory species that cross borders and oceans is both effective and essential,” she added.
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