In March, the threat of Covid-19 forced our education centres on the Aegean islands to close. Since then, asylum seekers have faced months of isolation and congestion in overcrowded camps. Now, as lockdown measures are slowly lifted, we're getting ready to get back to school.
The Covid-19 crisis has hit us hard. We have maintained extensive core infrastructure for months, committed to still being here for refugee youth once the virus passes. All this time, the conditions in the camps remain abysmal. Basic sanitary facilities are shared by hundreds of people; legal support is more limited than ever; medical aid is often impossible to access. For young refugees, the opportunity to attend a school and relax outside of the camp is available to just 20%.
We are very excited to announce that our projects are slowly reopening! On May 25, our teachers in Chios were able to start teaching at our Learning Centre. In the coming weeks, the rest of our centres on Chios and Samos will open too. This process of reopening depends heavily on protocols and policies from the Greek government, but it won't be long before we are able to start offering all of our services once again.
In our centres, students have access not only to education but to many of the basic facilities withheld in the camp: hot meals, showers, sports and games, music, wifi, sanitary items and much more. Action for Education is committed to providing high-quality, warm and welcoming learning opportunities to refugee youth. Join with us as we re-open our centres and begin to welcome back our students.
