Ukraine: Devastating impact of war on education and the future

February 24th marked the third anniversary of Russia’s brutal and illegal invasion of Ukraine. Early that morning, Russian air forces descended on Kiev’s Hostomel airport, intent on seizing the capital and Ukraine’s leadership. It was a critical battle that the Russians thankfully failed to do, but subsequent attacks have claimed hundreds of thousands of lives and caused countless injuries, with millions of Ukrainians forced to flee their homes, either internally or as refugees abroad.

The past three years have been marked by the resilience and sheer heroism of the Ukrainian people. As the war in Ukraine enters its fourth year, the destruction extends far beyond the battlefield. One of the most damaging long-term impacts of this war – and indeed of all wars and conflicts – is the disruption of education, with consequences that extend across generations.

The conflict in Ukraine has destroyed and continues to destroy schools and universities, compromising the learning of millions of children and young people.

According to the United Nations, in 2024 alone there were at least 576 attacks on educational facilities in Ukraine, a 96% increase compared to the previous year, the World Health Organization (WHO) reports that around 4,000 schools were affected, highlighting the enormous pressure on the Ukrainian education system.

More than 3 million children have been forced to flee their homes since the escalation of the war. According to the Ukrainian Ministry of Education and Science, around 4.6 million children face barriers to education and 2 million have seen their schools closed. As a result, many children who are unable to attend school develop speech problems, requiring support from a speech therapist. Several teachers have reported that some 5th and 6th graders (aged 10 to 12) are unable to read or hold a pen correctly to write. Equally worrying are the serious consequences for mental health, with millions of children known to be suffering high levels of trauma, anxiety and depression, as well as difficulties with concentration and emotional processing.

Even when schools remain open, the constant threat of airstrikes means classes are often interrupted, and children in Kyiv alone have endured more than 1,711 hours of alarm – the equivalent of more than 71 days – since the start of the full-scale war. The situation is even more dire for children in rural areas, where educational inequality has increased significantly.

Another study found that students living in villages are, on average, four to five years behind their peers.

In other regions and countries around the world that have faced prolonged wars, such as Syria, Gaza, Afghanistan, Angola and Sudan, entire generations have grown up without adequate access to education, making post-war social and economic reconstruction difficult. Thus, in addition to the immediate human and material losses, war leaves a lasting legacy of delayed development and inequality, showing that the impact on education is one of the most profound and difficult damages to repair.

Ukraine's underground schools are a response to Russian airstrikes, which frequently target civilian infrastructure, including educational facilities. Ukraine has initiated plans to build 139 underground schools and several dozen underground vocational education institutions.

For Ukraine to have a future, the most urgent need is, of course, to end Russia’s barbaric invasion, but it is also important to prioritise education, trying to minimise the learning gaps that, even in the most optimistic scenarios, will be devastating. Investing in child protection, education and mental health is essential to Ukraine’s recovery, ensuring that children receive the support they need to rebuild their lives and shape the country’s future.