Education data in conflict-affected countries: the fifth failure?

Poor-quality,or completely absent,data deny millions of children the right to an education. this is often the case in conflict-ridden areas. the 2011 education for all global monitoring report (unesco 2011b) identified four failures that are holding back progress in education and damaging millions of children's lives: failures of protection,provision,reconstruction,and peace-building. thus,the critical lack,and the varying quality,of data on education and on human rights violations against children during and after armed conflicts amount to what can be termed the fifth failure of the international community. this article examines how currently available data,and monitoring and evaluation systems,can be used and improved to better estimate the situation of children in conflict-affected countries,in particular with respect to education. in the light of international standards for data dissemination and data quality,it highlights the need for governments and the international community to expand our current capacity to provide general information on the impact that conflict has on education,children,parents,and schools,to ensure the right to education for millions of children living in conflict-affected countries. such an effort would include specific steps to ensure higher data quality in terms of completeness and accuracy,timeliness,serviceability,and methodological soundness. © 2013 unesco ibe.