# Global solidarity delivers major boost to Education Cannot Wait as "Hope Starts Here" campaign approaches its US$600 million goal

- Link: https://www.thailand-business-news.com/pr-news/global-solidarity-delivers-major-boost-to-education-cannot-wait-as-hope-starts-here-campaign-approaches-its-us600-million-goal
- Published: 2026-11-06T09:22:00+07:00
- Author: PR Newswire

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**Governments announce US$ 405.8 million in new pledges at Geneva replenishment 
conference, bringing ECW to 90% of its funding target and opening new pathways for
innovative partnerships to support education for crisis-affected children.**

GENEVA, Nov. 6, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Governments and partners rallied behind the 
world’s most vulnerable children today, announcing US$405.8 million in new pledges
to Education Cannot Wait (ECW) at its High-Level Replenishment Conference, hosted
by Switzerland in Geneva. Together with US$135.8 million in financial resources 
already secured through previous multi-year donor commitments, these pledges bring
ECW’s _Hope Starts Here_ campaign total to US$541.6 million, reaching 90% of its
US$600 million target.

 [⌊Participants gather at Education Cannot Wait’s High-Level Replenishment Conference in Geneva, Switzerland, on 5 November 2026, marking US$541.6 million in total pledges towards its US$600 million funding target to reach 10 million crisis-affected children with quality education.⌉](https://mmx.prnasia.com/media/MS2028226/Final-pic.jpg?id=OA3062180&p=medium600)

Participants gather at Education Cannot Wait’s High-Level Replenishment Conference
in Geneva, Switzerland, on 5 November 2026, marking US$541.6 million in total pledges
towards its US$600 million funding target to reach 10 million crisis-affected children
with quality education.

ECW expressed its deep gratitude to all governments and partners that stepped forward
with financial commitments, reaffirming their solidarity with children affected 
by conflict, displacement and climate-related disasters at a time of growing humanitarian
needs and shrinking international aid budgets.

Germany, the United Kingdom, Norway, Canada, Switzerland, Ireland, EU, and Japan
were among the governments whose commitments demonstrated continued international
leadership and confidence in ECW’s mission. Their collective support sends a powerful
message: even in difficult times, the world cannot afford to turn its back on children’s
education.

The conference marked a defining moment in ECW’s tenth anniversary year, renewing
the commitment made when the Fund was established in 2016: that children living 
through crises must not be left behind.

**Sigrid Kaag, Chair of ECW’s High-Level Steering Group, said:** "Education is a
fundamental human right, even in times of conflict, displacement and disaster. Today’s
commitments are a powerful demonstration of international solidarity and a renewal
of the promise we made ten years ago: that children caught in crises will not be
left behind. That promise must now be translated into action."

Switzerland’s leadership in hosting the conference reinforced the importance of 
collective responsibility and sustained international cooperation to protect children’s
right to education.

**Ambassador Dominik Stillhart, Co-Chair of ECW’s Executive Committee, said:** "
For more than a century, Geneva has been where the world comes together to address
its toughest challenges, and one lesson stands out: education cannot be treated 
as an exception when crises strike. That is why Switzerland hosted this conference
and pledged CHF 35 million to Education Cannot Wait for 2027 to 2030. But no country
can do this alone. We need governments and partners to step up. Today, our partners
chose to keep that promise funded."

Since its establishment, ECW and its partners have reached more than 16 million 
children in crisis-affected countries. Yet the scale of the challenge continues 
to grow, with an estimated 258 million school-aged children and adolescents affected
by crises worldwide.

The commitments announced in Geneva provide a strong foundation for ECW’s 2027–2030
Strategic Plan, which aims to reach 10 million children, half of them girls and 
including one million children with disabilities. The new strategy will strengthen
ECW’s ability to respond rapidly to emergencies while providing more sustained support
in protracted crises, investing in quality learning, protection, inclusion and the
resilience of national education systems.

The conference also signalled growing momentum to explore new approaches to financing
education in emergencies. Partnership offers and initiatives involving Porticus,
the International Finance Facility for Education (IFFEd), the Education Bridging
Fund (EBF) and Swiss cantonal banks highlighted opportunities to complement traditional
donor contributions by mobilizing development finance and private capital.

Discussions involving Enosis Capital, BNP Paribas and MetLife Investment Management
also explored the potential of an education continuity outcome bond, currently under
development, to mobilize investment for children affected by crises. These initiatives,
at different stages of development and subject to further design and institutional
approvals, could help ECW diversify its financing base and unlock additional resources
in the years ahead.

Beyond financing, high-level discussions brought together governments and partners
from crisis-affected countries to demonstrate the importance of national leadership,
including the integration of refugee and displaced children into national education
systems and the need for more predictable financing that connects humanitarian response
with longer-term recovery.

For ECW, the Geneva conference represents a major milestone, but not the conclusion
of the _Hope Starts Here_ campaign. Building on the confidence and commitments demonstrated
by partners, the Fund will now focus on translating this momentum into results for
children.

**Maysa Jalbout, Director of Education Cannot Wait, said:** "Today, our partners
have given us more than financial commitments. They have placed their confidence
in ECW and entrusted us with an enormous responsibility. We are deeply grateful.
But the true measure of today’s success will not be how much we have raised. It 
will be the difference we make in children’s lives. Our work starts now."

Looking ahead, ECW will focus on three priorities at the heart of its next strategic
period.

**First, ensuring that children are learning.** Access to education remains essential,
but it is not enough. ECW will place greater emphasis on quality learning, alongside
children’s safety, mental health and well-being, ensuring that investments deliver
meaningful and measurable results.

**Second, strengthening national and local leadership.** ECW will work to bring 
decisions and resources closer to communities affected by crises, advancing its 
ambition to channel at least 50% of programme financing through national and local
partners by 2030.

**Third, broadening the coalition that finances education in emergencies.** Government
contributions will remain the backbone of ECW’s work, complemented by stronger partnerships
with philanthropy, businesses, development banks and investors to mobilize additional
and more predictable financing.

With the replenishment target now within reach, ECW will continue engaging existing
and prospective partners to close the remaining funding gap and build on the momentum
generated in Geneva.

Ten years after its creation, ECW enters its next chapter with renewed confidence,
an ambitious strategy and a strengthened coalition of partners united by a common
commitment: no child should have to wait for a crisis to end before they can learn.

**Notes to Editors**  

**About Education Cannot Wait: **

Education Cannot Wait (ECW) is the global fund for education in crises. The Fund
provides rapid, flexible funding to locally-led education responses that protect
learning for refugee, internally displaced and other children, while strengthening
systems to sustain learning and resilience in fragile and conflict-affected contexts.
ECW works with governments, public and private funders, UN agencies, civil society
organisations, and other humanitarian and development aid actors so that no child
is left behind. 

As global crises intensify and the education financing gap widens, ECW calls on 
public and private sector partners to scale up investments so millions more crisis-
affected girls and boys can learn and rebuild their futures. 

**Additional information available at: **[www.educationcannotwait.org](https://edge.prnewswire.com/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=4815429-1&h=861753328&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.educationcannotwait.org%2F&a=www.educationcannotwait.org)

For press inquiries:
Rafik Elouerchefani: [ecwcomms@un-ecw.org](https://www.thailand-business-news.com/pr-news/ecwcomms@un-ecw.org)

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