Press Release – Global Charity Ƶ Receives €4.5 Million (£3.87m) from the Dutch Postcode Lottery to Invest in Education for Children in Emergencies (March 5, 2019)

A special award allows Ƶ to join forces with the Education Cannot Wait fund in a Ƶnext-generationƵ partnership to deliver education to thousands of young children in war zones and disaster areasheirworld will be first charity donor to a major global education fundRapid emergency assistance to be deployed to support refugee and displaced childrenheirworldƵs grant will match contributions by other private donors to multiply impact


  • A special awardallows𾱰ɴǰto joinforces with the Education Cannot Wait fund in a Ƶnext-generationƵ partnership to deliver education to thousands of young children in war zones and disaster areas

  • Ƶ will be first charity donor to a major global education fund

  • Rapidemergency assistance to be deployed to support refugee and displaced children

  • ƵƵs grant will match contributions by other private donors to multiply impact

The Dutch Postcode Lottery(Nationale Postcode Loterij) has announced a newseries ofgrantsto the global childrenƵs charity Ƶ to bring education to thousands of children around the world impacted by conflict and disaster.he€4,500,000(£3.87m)award was announced at the annual Goed Geld Gala in Amsterdam on Mondayevening in Amsterdam. Included in the total wasa special award of€3,150,000(£2.7m)which willlaunch a unique public-private partnership between Ƶ and Education Cannot Wait, the globaleducationfund for children impacted by emergencies.

As part of the award, Ƶ will redouble its effort to unleash the potential of the next generation of children caught up in warsandconflict through increased campaigning and innovation projects focused on breaking down barriers that stand in the way of education.As the first charity funding partner of a major globaleducationfund, T𾱰ɴǰwill direct€2,520,000(£1.93m)to direct programming through a contribution to the Education Cannot Wait fund.

ƵWe are more impactful by working together, and the award by the Dutch Postcode Lottery will allow us to not only deliver education to the most marginalised children, but leverage-up the funding through campaigning to have a multiplier effect for children,Ƶsaid Sarah Brown, Chair of Ƶ.

ƵThe funding will be used to providerapideducation assistance in places where it is needed mostƵ said Justin van Fleet, ƵƵs President. ƵThisnewpartnership will allow us to support thousands of children living in refugee camps who are not in school Ƶwherewe need to provide education quickly so they are not part of the lost generation Ƶ while we also finding the longer-term solutions soall childrencan reach their full potential.Ƶ

After years of campaigning,ledby ƵƵs cohort of 1,000 Global Youth Ambassadorsand coalition of over 40 civil society organisations, the Education Cannot Wait fund was established in 2016 at the World Humanitarian Summit to provide education to the 75 million children worldwide who have lost out on education because of war, disasters and crisis.

ƵWhile food, water and shelter were rightly prioritised, education was not seen as life-saving until Education Cannot Wait was set up, makingeducationpart of the emergency responseƵ said Sarah Brown. ƵNow that we have this fund, Ƶ is making a significant investment on behalf of our youth campaigners, thanks to the Dutch Postcode Lottery.Ƶ

Part of Education Cannot WaitƵs strategy has been to bring together private partners, including foundations and companies, to invest in new ways of working to deliver education to refugees and displaced children. Ƶ joins other contributions by business partners through the Global Business Coalition for Education and Dubai Cares, a majorglobaleducation philanthropyorganisation. Some ofheirworld’sfunding will be placed in challenge grants to be matched by other private contributors to multiply the impact.

ƵEducation needs to be this generationƵs moonshot and this funding from the Postcode Lottery will allow us tomobilise enough people, partners and resources so that every refugee child is at schoolƵ said van Fleet. ƵWe will look for the hardest toreach children in emergenciesand keep a watching brief on all hotspots where childrenƵs education is at risk Ƶ from the GreekAegeanIslands, Venezuela and Syria to the Central African Republic and beyond.Ƶ

Education wasatheme of this yearƵs annual charity event, which was headlined by United Nations Special Envoy for Global Education, Gordon Brown whopraised the innovation of the Dutch Postcode Lottery in making this award.ƵWorking together, there can be no ceiling onouraspirationsƵforƵ and ambitions of Ƶthe worldƵs children, and no limit to what together we can and will achieve,Ƶ Brown said.

Yasmine Sherif, the Director of Education Cannot Wait said, ƵWe are profoundlyƵgrateful to Ƶ for making this contribution to Education Cannot Wait, and to the DutchPostcode Lottery for making this possible.Ƶ It is thanks to the voices of young people across the world that education is becoming a global priority for all of humanity Ƶ regardless of borders.Ƶ We will now move quickly to ensure we deliver education to refugee and displaced children with our new partner, Ƶ.Ƶ

Notes to Editors

Ƶis a global charity which unleashesthe potential of the next generation. Every child deserves the best start in life, a safe school to learn in, and skills for the future.ƵWe analyse complex systems to identify the barriers to progress and then use our tools of campaigning, innovation projects and partnership building to unlock the innovation, finance, political will and inclusion necessary to create change from the top down and bottom up.

The Global Business Coalition for Education, an initiative of Ƶ,Ƶserves as the business communityƵs social impact advisor, combining the expertise of education and business to develop customised programs and identify investments, partnerships, and opportunities that will have the greatest impactfor children and youth.

Education Cannot Wait (ECW)is the first global fund dedicated to education in emergencies. It was launched by international humanitarian and development aid actors, along with public and private donors, to address the urgent education needs of 75 million children and youth in conflict and crisis settings. ECWƵs investment modalities are designed to usher in a more collaborative approach among actors on the ground, ensuring relief and development organizations join forces to achieve education outcomes. Education Cannot Wait is hosted by UNICEF. The Fund is administered under UNICEFƵs financial, human resources and administrative rules and regulations, while operations are run by the FundƵs own independent governance structure. For more information:Ƶwww.educationcannotwait.org

The Nationale Postcode Loterij(The Dutch Postcode Lottery)is the biggest charity lottery in the Netherlands.ƵSince the start in 1989, theDutch Postcode Lotteryhas contributed over 5.5 billion euros to charity organisations dedicated to ƵpeopleƵ and ƵplanetƵ. It now supports 112 charities worldwide and plays a pioneering role in the quest for a fair and enterprising, green and responsible world.

For information, please contact:

Laura Weeks
Communications Coordinator, T𾱰ɴǰ
T: +44 (0)207 596 2817
Lauraw@theirworld.org