In 2024, the number of attacks on education in Colombia nearly doubled since the previous year. The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) calls for immediate action by Colombian authorities to protect students, school workers and the right to education.
Colombia: Attacks on education nearly doubled in 2024
A total of 242 attacks on education were documented by NRC during 2024 in 14 of the country's 32 departments, up from 132 the year before. On the International Day of Education, NRC alerts all authorities in Colombia of the increase in attacks against education caused by the armed conflict and urges national and local authorities to accelerate their efforts to implement the government's Safe Schools Plan.
“The consequences of the control of armed actors and the absence of the State in this territory are having a profound impact on education," a teacher in the southwestern department of Cauca, told NRC.
Most attacks on education in 2024 involved military use or the occupation of schools, and the use of landmines, unexploded ordnance, and improvised explosives in or around schools. The year also saw a rise in reports of risks and forced recruitment within schools.
Last year, more than 24,000 students, teachers and school workers were affected as a result of attacks against education, and education had to be temporarily suspended in 86 educational institutions in areas where NRC is present.
The departments most affected by these attacks were Cauca – where most attacks on education were reported last year – Arauca and Norte de Santander, located in the south-west and north-east of the country.
“In conflict zones, guaranteeing the right to education requires the protection of schools. It is urgent that the government's will and actions translate into a decrease in attacks on education,” said Giovanni Rizzo, NRC’s Country Director in Colombia.
According to the information collected by NRC, 96 per cent of educational institutions where attacks on education have been reported, require responses to ensure student and teacher safety, psychological first aid and mine risk education training, as well as the repair and improvement of school infrastructure.
“Protecting some students is not enough. All students in conflict zones must be protected. The lives of students, teachers and school workers are at risk. We cannot fail those who will be the future of the country,” said Rizzo.
Notes to editors:
- According to the data collected by NRC, a total of 24,003 people were affected by 242 attacks on education in the context of armed conflict (22,720 students, 1,108 teachers, 175 other school staff) during the period January to December 2024 in areas of Colombia where NRC has a presence.
- In 2023, NRC reported 132 attacks against education and during 2022, 74 attacks.
- The increase in attacks against education caused by the armed conflict has been evidenced by the NRC since 2022. NRC data show that more than 48,300 students, teachers and other school staff have been affected by attacks on education from January 2022 to December 2024 in areas where NRC has a presence.
- NRC collected information in the departments of: Antioquia, Arauca, Bolivar, Caqueta, Cauca, Choco, La Guajira, Magdalena, Meta, Nariño, Norte de Santander, Putumayo, Valle del Cauca and Vaupes.
- NRC's report (only available in Spanish) is not a comprehensive analysis of all attacks on education in Colombia. The data and information presented in this report only reflect the situation in the areas where NRC is present, and its categories of analysis are limited to those related to the Safe Schools Declaration.
For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact:
- NRC global media hotline: media@nrc.no, +47 905 62 329
- Ana Milena Ayala Sanchez, advocacy and communication officer in Colombia: ayala@nrc.no, +57 3232746021
A total of 242 attacks on education were documented by NRC during 2024 in 14 of the country's 32 departments, up from 132 the year before. On the International Day of Education, NRC alerts all authorities in Colombia of the increase in attacks against education caused by the armed conflict and urges national and local authorities to accelerate their efforts to implement the government's Safe Schools Plan.
“The consequences of the control of armed actors and the absence of the State in this territory are having a profound impact on education," a teacher in the southwestern department of Cauca, told NRC.
Most attacks on education in 2024 involved military use or the occupation of schools, and the use of landmines, unexploded ordnance, and improvised explosives in or around schools. The year also saw a rise in reports of risks and forced recruitment within schools.
Last year, more than 24,000 students, teachers and school workers were affected as a result of attacks against education, and education had to be temporarily suspended in 86 educational institutions in areas where NRC is present.
The departments most affected by these attacks were Cauca – where most attacks on education were reported last year – Arauca and Norte de Santander, located in the south-west and north-east of the country.
“In conflict zones, guaranteeing the right to education requires the protection of schools. It is urgent that the government's will and actions translate into a decrease in attacks on education,” said Giovanni Rizzo, NRC’s Country Director in Colombia.
According to the information collected by NRC, 96 per cent of educational institutions where attacks on education have been reported, require responses to ensure student and teacher safety, psychological first aid and mine risk education training, as well as the repair and improvement of school infrastructure.
“Protecting some students is not enough. All students in conflict zones must be protected. The lives of students, teachers and school workers are at risk. We cannot fail those who will be the future of the country,” said Rizzo.
Notes to editors:
- According to the data collected by NRC, a total of 24,003 people were affected by 242 attacks on education in the context of armed conflict (22,720 students, 1,108 teachers, 175 other school staff) during the period January to December 2024 in areas of Colombia where NRC has a presence.
- In 2023, NRC reported 132 attacks against education and during 2022, 74 attacks.
- The increase in attacks against education caused by the armed conflict has been evidenced by the NRC since 2022. NRC data show that more than 48,300 students, teachers and other school staff have been affected by attacks on education from January 2022 to December 2024 in areas where NRC has a presence.
- NRC collected information in the departments of: Antioquia, Arauca, Bolivar, Caqueta, Cauca, Choco, La Guajira, Magdalena, Meta, Nariño, Norte de Santander, Putumayo, Valle del Cauca and Vaupes.
- NRC's report (only available in Spanish) is not a comprehensive analysis of all attacks on education in Colombia. The data and information presented in this report only reflect the situation in the areas where NRC is present, and its categories of analysis are limited to those related to the Safe Schools Declaration.
For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact:
- NRC global media hotline: media@nrc.no, +47 905 62 329
- Ana Milena Ayala Sanchez, advocacy and communication officer in Colombia: ayala@nrc.no, +57 3232746021