Accra hosts West Africa's second education-in-emergencies conference, 29 to 30 September

Pinned summary · as of 06:22

Accra is the venue for the second West African high-level meeting on scaling up education initiatives in emergencies, running from 29 to 30 September 2026. Ministers, researchers and funders are due to look for ways of keeping pupils in class when disasters or conflict close schools.

What we know

• Ghana is the host of the second regional gathering of its kind for West Africa, staged in Accra on 29 and 30 September 2026 and focused on scaling up education initiatives during emergencies.
• Ministers responsible for education are expected to attend, alongside researchers, innovators, financiers, academics and development partners, with discussions centred on how pupils can continue learning during crises in the region.
• Education Minister Hon. Haruna Iddrisu pointed to COVID-19, the Akosombo Dam spillage and violence such as the Bawku conflict as cases where emergencies uprooted learners, interrupted classes and damaged school infrastructure.
• Mr Iddrisu urged that interventions which have worked should move past the pilot stage and be scaled up.
• He also asked for stronger financing arrangements for education in emergencies and for more cooperation among countries in the region.

What's disputed / unconfirmed

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  The Vaultz News reported that bringing participants from several sectors together is meant to produce joint solutions instead of separate, sector-by-sector responses; Opemsuo 104.7 did not report this.
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  According to The Vaultz News, Mr Iddrisu warned that without adequate and predictable funding, countries will keep struggling to respond to school disruptions however well their programmes are designed. He was also quoted as saying: “We cannot afford to keep successful interventions trapped in pilot phases when children’s futures are at stake.” Only that publication carried these remarks.

Why it matters for Ghana

Ghana has recent experience of schools being disrupted by the pandemic, the Akosombo Dam spillage and the conflict in Bawku, which left pupils out of class and buildings damaged. Any agreement to fund and expand tested approaches could affect how quickly children in affected communities return to lessons after the next flood or conflict. Parents, teachers and district education offices would be the first to feel a change.