Girls attend an informal open-air school in Chaparhar District, Afghanistan. The ban on girls attending school continues to undermine the right to education, affecting nearly 2.2 million students.
Across the world, war, extremism, and displacement deny children the right to education. Schools are destroyed, teachers killed or forced to relocate, textbooks burned, and classrooms turned into barracks. The UN estimates that 85 million of the 234 million school-age children affected by conflict worldwide have no access to education at all. The consequences extend far beyond the classroom, impacting physical, emotional, social, and cognitive development. Since 2011, the photographer – son of a teacher and father of an 11-year-old – has documented this crisis across nine countries, from Western and South Asia, to Europe and South America.
The photographs that shape how we see the world don’t appear by chance. They are the result of persistence, courage, and careful work. Support World Press Photo with a donation, so we can continue to be a platform for these stories.
