The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund has launched a call for partners to continue education services and skills development interventions for Rohingya children and adolescents in both Cox’s Bazar and Bhasan Char, Bangladesh.
The initiative aims to ensure that boys and girls, including those with disabilities, have access to inclusive, quality education and learning opportunities while building skills that prepare adolescents for future livelihoods.
The programme in Cox’s Bazar focuses on home-based early childhood education, delivery of the Myanmar Curriculum for primary and secondary levels, and the selection and training of teaching and non-teaching volunteers. A strong emphasis is placed on outreach and community engagement to foster resilience, build trust, and empower communities to lead their own development. Information management and Ed-Tech integration are critical to strengthening learning and administration, alongside efficient management and monitoring of education supplies. Gender mainstreaming and inclusion will be embedded throughout, ensuring that girls and children with disabilities are supported to access and benefit from education services.
On Bhasan Char, the programme mirrors these priorities by providing early childhood education, Myanmar Curriculum learning opportunities, and computer-based skills programmes for adolescents. Volunteer selection and capacity building remain central, as do information management systems, outreach and engagement with communities, and the sustainable management of education supplies. In addition, partners are expected to support the Education Sector in Bhasan Char in the absence of a designated Sector Coordinator, further reinforcing coordination and sector-wide delivery.
Skills development represents a key strand of the initiative. Adolescents will be engaged in governance arrangements and supported to take on leadership roles in their own initiatives. Training will include literacy, numeracy, transferable skills, vocational and trade courses, as well as modules in 21st century skills and green skills. Through partnerships with government institutions, functional English and occupational training under SKILFO will also be offered. Importantly, graduates of these programmes will be linked with volunteer roles, apprenticeships, entrepreneurship opportunities, and income-generating pathways.
Cross-sectoral coordination will be vital, with partners expected to work closely with child protection, gender-based violence, health, nutrition, WASH, and livelihoods actors. This will help reinforce referral systems, mitigate risks, and maximize the overall impact of services. UNICEF’s support will enable selected partners to deliver high-quality, inclusive, and sustainable education and skills development interventions that align with the Joint Response Plan (JRP) and meet minimum international standards.
