Syria’s Classrooms Begin to Recover as UNESCO Support Reaches Over 140,000 Learners

Following the 2023 earthquake, UNESCO supported the rehabilitation of 60 schools in Aleppo and Hama, benefiting 44,875 learners and 297 teachers.

For children whose education has been interrupted by conflict, displacement and disaster, returning to school means finding a safe place to learn and receiving help with lessons they have missed. UNESCO is working with Syria's Ministry of Education to address these needs through school repairs, catch-up programmes and support for teachers, reaching more than 140,000 learners and training over 15,000 education actors across all 14 governorates.

The scale of disruption has made recovery a challenge that stretches beyond reopening school buildings, with teachers, curricula and education planning needing sustained support. In an update published on 5 October 2026, UNESCO describes work that connects children's immediate learning needs with improvements intended to make Syria's education system safer, more inclusive and better equipped to withstand future crises.

Repaired schools give children space to return and catch up

Following the 2023 earthquake, UNESCO supported the rehabilitation of 60 schools in Aleppo and Hama, benefiting 44,875 learners and 297 teachers. Its support included furniture for learning environments serving 9,000 learners and the restoration of one school in Aleppo's Old City, a UNESCO World Heritage site, bringing an education space back into use within an area of cultural importance.

Recovering missed learning requires dedicated support alongside repaired classrooms, particularly for learners whose schooling has been repeatedly disrupted. More than 95,000 learners have participated in catch-up and second-chance programmes, supported by training for 1,478 teachers to deliver catch-up sessions. These programmes address the learning gaps that can remain after children return to education, making academic recovery part of the wider effort to restore access to school.

Teachers and better planning form the backbone of recovery

More than 15,000 teachers, trainers and supervisors have received training across Syria, and UNESCO is developing a programme adapted to the country's circumstances that focuses on teaching competencies, school leadership and inclusive, safe and resilient education. This work recognises the responsibilities placed on educators who must support learning in communities affected by years of disruption, with professional development covering classroom practice and the leadership needed to support schools.

Curriculum reform is another part of the recovery effort, with 200 curriculum specialists trained in Global Citizenship Education and life skills. Priorities identified in 2026 include strengthening national expertise in curriculum design, particularly digital citizenship, assessment and value-based education. UNESCO is providing technical assistance for Syria's national Education Management Information System, improving the quality, availability and use of education data so that planning, resource allocation and monitoring can respond more effectively to recovery needs.

Safer learning reaches families and cultural spaces

In earthquake-affected communities, UNESCO is supporting safer and more inclusive learning environments through its Minimum Standards for Safe Schools tool, adapted for the Arab region. Targeted training has reached 411 education actors in Aleppo, Hama and Lattakia, supporting the practical work of strengthening school safety and resilience as communities rebuild their education services.

Young children and families returning to Syria after displacement are included in the work through approaches being developed for early childhood care and education, including caregiver capacity development. UNESCO is collaborating with its Category 2 Regional Centre for Early Childhood Care and Education in the Arab States on this effort. An educational outreach strategy designed in 2025 for the National Museum of Damascus extends learning into cultural spaces, strengthening connections with schools and universities and helping learners engage with Syria's heritage.

Together, these activities connect school restoration and learning recovery with stronger teaching, curricula, information systems and community support. UNESCO's continuing work with the Ministry of Education and national partners places immediate recovery within a longer-term commitment to a safe, inclusive, resilient and quality education system for everyone.