Ethiopia: Tigray's Lost Classrooms - Why Education Must Be At the Centre of Recovery

What the report says

AllAfrica carried an African Arguments analysis by Addis-Alem Belay on 25 July 2026 arguing that education should be central to Tigray’s post-war recovery in northern Ethiopia. The article says the conflict harmed not only homes, health facilities and livelihoods, but also the region’s long-term prospects by keeping children out of school for years.

According to figures cited in the analysis from the European Commission’s humanitarian aid directorate, about 2.4 million school-age children in Tigray had missed three academic years by January 2025, while 88% of school infrastructure had been damaged. The piece also refers to a World Bank-supported damage and needs assessment, which found major disruption and, in areas assessed in December 2021, the return of only around 40% of previously enrolled primary pupils. It describes schools that were damaged, looted, occupied or left without desks, books, laboratory materials, water and sanitation facilities.

The analysis stresses that reopening classrooms alone would not resolve the crisis. It says many children are returning with experiences of displacement, hunger, bereavement, violence or family separation, and may have lost literacy and numeracy skills. It identifies adolescent girls, children with disabilities and displaced children as especially at risk of not returning, because of pressures such as poverty, domestic work, safety concerns and early marriage.

The article frames schooling as both an education and protection issue, saying schools can provide structure, trusted adults, meals, social contact and links to support services. It calls for transparent assessments, safe rebuilt classrooms, water and sanitation, textbooks, accelerated learning, psychosocial support, reliable teacher pay, school feeding, and vocational options for older students who cannot easily resume conventional schooling.