Safe Schools for all

Hosted by the Ministry of Education in cooperation with the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR), and attended by representatives from 23 countries, the international conference on Safe Schools Leaders took place on October 4-5 at Tehran’s Parsian Azadi Hotel, AVA Diplomatic reports.

The meeting aimed to build on the commitments made to the Worldwide Initiative for Safe Schools and school safety implementation at the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction.

Mr. Eshagh Jahangiri, First Vice-President said in his opening remarks: “I hope this meeting will be a starting point for greater interaction between the Iranian Ministry of Education and counterparts around the world. Given the significant progress already made in Iran on ensuring the basic right of students to enjoy safe schools, this initiative can be an incredible opportunity.”

Mr. Gary Lewis, United Nations Resident Coordinator also spoke and pointed out to Iran’s accomplishments in education and schooling and said: “Iran has taken good measures in equipping schools by investing 4 billion dollars in this field and has reduced the numbers of unsafe schools down to 40 percent in the period from 2006 to 2014, which is the highest rate of retrofitting schools against natural disasters in the whole world.”

Mr. Lewis also praised Iran for incorporating the global school safety program, expressing hope that other countries would also follow Iran’s steps in this regard.

Ms. Margareta Wahlström, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction, who chaired the concluding session, said: “The proposed action plan contains concrete goals which will build on the momentum already generated by many countries to make schools safe not just from earthquakes but a variety of hazards including floods and storms.”