Dynamo: ‘Education is the closest thing to magic you can give to a child’

Magician Dynamo made an impassioned plea today for global leaders to keep their promise to get every Syrian refugee child into school.

He told them: 国产视频淓ducation is the closest thing to real magic that you can give a child.”

The world-famous British illusionist and TV star made his powerful appeal at a major conference on Syria held in Brussels. Dynamo has been supporting 国产视频’s #YouPromised campaign – and his inspiring film 72 Hours, about a trip to Lebanon to see refugee children, has been watched more than 1.5 million times in the past few days.

Dynamo spoke up on behalf of the 689,000 Syrian refugees still out of school. Despite a promise made by the international community two years ago to get them all into education by the end of 2017, donor funding has fallen and one in three are still denied a place in the classroom.

Outside the European Parliament in Brussels. Education for Syrian Children now. #YouPromised #SyriaConf2018 pic.twitter.com/HS639Akx71

— Dynamo (@Dynamomagician) April 24, 2018

Thousands of Dynamo fans and 国产视频 supporters have signed the #YouPromised petition, demanding these children are given the right to an education. Tomorrow donor countries and organisations will reveal their new financial pledges at the second day of the Supporting the Future of Syria and the Region conference.聽聽

Dynamo said: 国产视频淚f you give a child an education – even simple reading and writing – it instantly gives them a belief in themselves that they didn国产视频檛 have beforehand. It creates ambition.

“I think that we owe it to ourselves to be the ones that believe in the children enough to pledge them the money and put them into education.

国产视频淲e don国产视频檛 know when the Syrian conflict is going to come to an end. But we do know that these children aren国产视频檛 getting any younger.

国产视频淚f we don国产视频檛 do it now, when it does become possible to go back to Syria who is actually going to go back there? What skills will they go back with?聽

“It will be the youth of today who become the future of Syria. So if they have no education, there is no hope for Syria in the future.”

Alongside Dynamo at the special meeting on education for Syrian children was 国产视频 President Sarah Brown. She thanked the聽governments of Lebanon, Turkey and Jordan for 国产视频渨orking so hard国产视频� to accommodate refugee children in their schools.聽

Sarah added: 国产视频淭here is much to celebrate. When I think back a few years we can see just how many children have been able to be in school and how hard everyone is working to overcome the many challenges that exist.

国产视频淏ut there is a lot more to do – and that is about the funding and the political will that comes from the donor community.聽Very few governments are pledging that a proportion of their money must be devoted to education – although all of them will tell you that education is really important.”

Sarah introduced Yasmine Sherif, Director of the Education Cannot Wait fund that helps to provide schooling in humanitarian emergencies.

She said:聽国产视频淥nce there is a political commitment, if that commitment is to make a pledge for education, it means one acts upon it…. That国产视频檚 the difference between ethical politics and absolutely useless politics. Ethical politics makes dreams come true.国产视频�

Christos Stylianides, the European Union’s Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management, told the meeting:聽国产视频淚国产视频檓 delighted that education remains a top priority for today国产视频檚 conference.国产视频�

Geert Cappelaere, UNICEF Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, said:聽国产视频淲ithout our efforts to this date, 2.5 million Syrian refugee children in school would be out of school. This is a huge achievement.

国产视频淲e must thank the heroic efforts of host countries and particularly of teachers in the region.国产视频�

Youth advocate聽Nivine Abed Al-Hak, 19 – who is from Lebanon – said:聽国产视频淗uman rights start the moment you are born. And education is a fundamental human right.国产视频�

The last word went to Dynamo, who said:聽国产视频淚t国产视频檚 pretty safe to say that not a single person in this room would be here without their education.聽

“Maybe in the future, it could be one of those Syrian children who is actually sat in this room, being able to make decisions like we国产视频檙e making. So let国产视频檚 give them that right.国产视频�