New AdaptED report shares lessons for building disaster-resilient education systems in Latin America and the Caribbean
Overlooking San Salvador, El Salvador.
As climate-related hazards intensify across Latin America and the Caribbean, a new GPE KIX-supported report examines how education systems can better prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters while protecting learning continuity and equity.
Disasters are increasingly disrupting education across Latin America and the Caribbean. Between 2000 and 2019, more than 11 million children and adolescents in the region experienced interruptions to their education as a result of approximately 60 disasters. These disasters—arising from the interaction between hazards such as hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions and pre-existing vulnerabilities—do more than damage school infrastructure. They interrupt learning, deepen inequalities, and put the right to education at risk for millions of students.
A new report from AdaptED: Observatory for Educational Resilience in Latin America and the Caribbean explores what education systems can do to better withstand these disruptions. The report, Disasters and Education in Latin America and the Caribbean: Impacts, Challenges, and Opportunities for Resilience, analyzes how disasters affect education and identifies promising practices for strengthening education system resilience in the region.
The publication is the first in a series of AdaptED thematic reports examining major threats to educational continuity in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Drawing on case studies from Dominica, El Salvador, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, the report shows that previous experiences with disasters have often become turning points for education reform. In each country, exposure to hurricanes, storms, floods, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and other hazards has revealed vulnerabilities in education systems while also prompting new policies, investments, and coordination mechanisms to protect learning and support recovery.
The three case studies illustrate different but complementary approaches to educational resilience:
- Dominica has placed resilience at the centre of national development following Hurricane Maria in 2017. Guided by the principle of “build back better,” the country has invested in resilient school infrastructure, integrated disaster risk reduction into the curriculum, and strengthened planning for education continuity during emergencies.
- Saint Vincent and the Grenadines has advanced a school-centred approach through school safety policies, school safety committees, Student Emergency Response Teams, teacher training, and the integration of disaster risk reduction and climate change into teaching and learning.
- El Salvador has developed a strong institutional and regulatory approach, including mandatory school risk management plans, school protection guidelines, intersectoral coordination, and investments in resilient school infrastructure.
The report also highlights that disaster resilience in education cannot be limited to rebuilding schools or reopening classrooms. Disasters have both direct effects, such as damaged infrastructure, school closures and loss of learning materials, and indirect effects, such as household income loss, food insecurity, migration, violence and mental health challenges. These indirect effects can have long-term consequences for attendance, learning, retention and student well-being, particularly for learners already facing vulnerability.
Among its recommendations, the report calls for stronger policy frameworks and coordination mechanisms, greater investment in preparedness and prevention, improved evidence generation, and the systematic integration of climate change and disaster risk reduction into education systems. It also emphasizes the importance of ensuring that resilience efforts address the needs of vulnerable populations and support equitable learning opportunities.
As climate-related risks grow across the region, the report calls for a more comprehensive approach to education system resilience—one that protects learning continuity while also addressing the social, emotional, economic, and territorial impacts of disasters on learners and communities. Ensuring resilient education systems, the report concludes, means ensuring that all children and young people can continue learning safely and equitably, even in times of crisis.
