Farhan Haq, UN Deputy spokesperson, says one million children in Nepal are unable to return to school after earthquake hit the country last month.
He said in New York on Tuesday that the condition had become of great worry, which highlighted the need to address education in emergencies.
Haq said UN was treating the case with utmost urgency because the emergency flash appeal for education had received only 1.3 per cent of the needed funding.
He said the situation was placing children at risk of trafficking, forced labor and abuse.
Haq said Gordon Brown, UN Secretary-General’s Envoy for Global Education, said the tragic events in Nepal illustrate the urgent need to address education in emergencies.
He added that there was also the need for a global humanitarian fund to finance relative actions for immediate help.
Haq said Nepal’s Ministry of Education report indicated that 12,550 classrooms and 1,016 water supply systems to the school areas were completely destroyed.
He said more than 4,070 classrooms had major cracks and another 6,889 classrooms had minor cracks.
Haq said stressed that the government of Nepal has postponed the reopening date of its schools to May 29, 15 days later than the previous date.
He said the schools were unlikely to follow the order due to the devastated structures and lack of open spaces for temporary facilities.
