Colombia's Lifeline for Children: Education

UNICEF correspondent Amy Bennett reports on how educational programs in Colombia are helping children recover from emergency situations and a legacy of turbulent times.

Colombia's Lifeline for Children: Education Amy Bennett: For the past 40 years, Colombia has undergone a serious humanitarian crisis and during social unrest a numerous natural disasters like floods, earthquakes and hurricanes. The impact on children and young people is particularly devastating and protecting them from harm is a priority. Paul Martin: The biggest challenge for Columbia’s violence, violence in many many forms, violence in the family, violence in the school, violence in the street, others there are organized violence of criminal gangs and rebel groups. It’s a country which is quite traumatized by violence. Amy Bennett: The instability has left many children vulnerable and out on the streets. Female: We need money; we don’t have any parents to take care of us. Amy Bennett: The school going to the child program seeks out at risk children and brings them into the school system. Clara Serna: We go to the neighborhoods, we find the children that are not in school and we evaluate them and then we start to talk to the family to find out why they’re not in school. Then we start to resolve the problem, their own specific problems Amy Bennett: The school going to the child is one of several partnerships that have been setup between Colombia’s ministry of education, UNICEF, civil society groups and others which help children get off the streets and back in school where they can be protected and educated. Clara Serna: We’ve past from just providing services to focusing on rights, in that way we can ensure that all the rights of children in the city are being met, independently of their cultural and economic background. Amy Bennett: For Colombia’s children, the struggle to stay out of harms way and thrive centers on their right to a quality education, education that restores children’s rights will also restore hope for the countries future. This is Amy Bennett reporting for UNICEF television, unite for children.