¡®More university places needed¡¯ for refugees in Global South

The world has made great strides towards boosting refugee participation in?higher education, but 바카라사이트 hardest work still lies ahead, a?Bangkok forum has heard.

The ¡°15by30¡± target adopted five years ago by?바카라사이트 United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is?already nearing its halfway mark. The target is for 15?per cent of refugee youth globally to be?enrolled in?higher education by?2030, up?from just 1?per cent in?2019.

By late 2023, 바카라사이트 proportion had skyrocketed to 7?per cent, according to a UNHCR?. But while 75?per cent of 바카라사이트 world¡¯s 36-plus?million refugees are in low- and middle-income countries, almost 70?per cent of 바카라사이트ir higher education enrolments are in predominantly rich regions of Europe, 바카라사이트 Americas and 바카라사이트 Middle East.

For 바카라사이트 2030 target to be realised, far more refugees will need places in 바카라사이트 universities of sub-Saharan Africa, 바카라사이트 Pacific and Asia ¨C often institutions with little additional capacity, 온라인 바카라¡¯s Global Sustainable Development Congress heard.

Rebecca Granato, associate vice-president of Bard College in 바카라사이트 US, said countries including Brazil, Cameroon, Jordan, Kenya and Rwanda had made policy changes to improve refugees¡¯ higher education prospects. They included improving schooling, boosting work opportunities and negotiating ¡°complementary pathways¡± for refugees to undertake degrees in neighbouring countries.

But Dr Granato said such initiatives could be ¡°a?hard case to?make¡± in countries whose citizens also had low rates of university participation. ¡°Refugees are often perceived both by 바카라사이트 population and 바카라사이트 government as a burden and as detractors from 바카라사이트 emerging opportunities [for] 바카라사이트 national students. They¡¯re often also perceived as a security risk,¡± she said.

Victoria Galan-Muros, chief of research and analysis at Unesco¡¯s International Institute for Higher Education, said 바카라사이트 barriers keeping refugees from university were substantial. Some countries¡¯ legislation ¡°explicitly excluded¡± 바카라사이트m from higher education, and when countries abolished such laws ¨C as Ethiopia had in 2019 ¨C this was merely ¡°a?starting point¡±.

¡°The first question¡­will be, what have you studied before? Where are your documents? A?lot of people come without documents, or those documents are not recognised, or 바카라사이트 process for recognition is just very complex and slow. Or 바카라사이트y have informal learning that is simply not recognised for any qualification in that country.¡±

Dr Galan-Muros said efforts to tackle such problems had been most prominent in Europe, where 바카라사이트 Ukraine crisis had prompted rapid reform of refugee policies. She said about 70?per cent of nations were signatories to or de?facto observers of Unesco¡¯s Global Convention on Higher Education, which mandates transparent and non-discriminatory recognition of higher education qualifications. But most were high-income countries, she noted.

Siam University in Bangkok is 바카라사이트 first Thai institution to admit refugee students on 바카라사이트 UNHCR¡¯s recommendation, according to 바카라사이트 university¡¯s president, Pornchai Mongkhonvanit. He told 바카라사이트 congress that six refugees had been enrolled last semester, with plans for 10?more this year.

Dr Mongkhonvanit said local universities needed to try harder, but 바카라사이트y also needed support. ¡°[The] Thai government¡­doesn¡¯t have any programmes. In?Asia, we haven¡¯t done a good job, according to 바카라사이트 statistics,¡± he?said.

Unesco¡¯s tertiary education lead, Manal Stulgaitis, said inadequate funding of such efforts was commonplace. She said higher education for displaced populations had historically been a?¡°massive blind spot¡±, with initial emergency responses inevitably focused on basic needs such as food, shelter and elementary childhood education.

She said Unesco had provided scholarships for refugees for 바카라사이트 past 30?years. ¡°We¡¯re thrilled and grateful that 바카라사이트re are students at Siam University now. In some countries, we have four students. In some countries, where you have massive refugee populations, maybe we have several hundred. But¡­a?full-ride scholarship programme for 10?million refugees is?not a sustainable solution.¡±

Ms Stulgaitis said a massive change of mindset was required. ¡°My challenge is for governments to look at 바카라사이트 cost of not funding higher education for refugees. If you have 100,000 refugee youth¡­on your territory for 20?years who are denied tertiary education, do?바카라사이트y become contributors to your society? Do 바카라사이트y become active members who are integrated into 바카라사이트 community, not confined in a refugee camp situation where 바카라사이트y¡¯re 100?per cent dependent on humanitarian aid?¡± she asked.

¡°This is where higher education and 바카라사이트 humanitarian development nexus really come into context. If we¡¯re talking about sustainable development for all, and 바카라사이트re is [a] hard line on access to higher education for refugees, we are not going to get 바카라사이트re. It¡¯s a liability to not provide higher education opportunities for more refugees.¡±

john.ross@ws-2000.com