Andrea Bocelli Foundation and Emergency Response Centre International (ERCI) Join Forces to Provide More Efficient Education to Refugee Youth in Greece
Greece is currently hosting more than 62,000 refugees and migrants, the majority of whom come from war-torn countries such as Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. Almost 40% of this displaced population is children. ABF is partnering with ERCI to provide more efficient and accessible education to refugee minors residing in refugee camps and shelters in Greece.
ERCI, a Greek nonprofit aiming to alleviate gaps in humanitarian crises, developed in June 2016 its educational component, ERCIedu, in order to address the gaps created due to the lack of access to education or educational activities towards young refugees and avoid a lost generation of youth.
ERCIedu aims to support and empower youth through innovative curriculum that provides them with the necessary life skills, incentives and language learning to prepare them for their next transition in life and social integration. ERCIedu’s Refugee Youth Learning Program serves children of ages 4-17 years old, including unaccompanied minors.
ABF will be supporting ERCIedu through the purchase of technological assets that will allow better access to educational and learning content. Currently ERCIedu is active in ‘’Elpida Home’’ a model refugee accommodation facility in Northern Greece, offering daily classes of English, Math and Arabic to 80 kids. Deploying technological assets as part of the program will enhance it significantly, primarily by allowing ERCIedu to offer curriculum that only exists in digital form. Being part of ‘’Elpida Home’’, makes ERCIedu part of a bigger pilot scheme, which aims to provide more efficient and humane aid to displaced populations, while demonstrating best practices.
“I am thrilled to see this partnership going forward. Providing refugee youth with technology will not only improve their learning, but also equip them with a life-improving skill set leading to accelerated social integration”, Panos G. Moraitis founder of ERCI notes, “Private initiatives like this of Andrea Bocelli’s Foundation enable us to provide more efficient aid in the field. I hope this marks the beginning of an impactful partnership that will benefit many.”
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ABOUT ERCI
Emergency Response Centre International (ERCI) is a Greek nonprofit organization that provides emergency response and humanitarian aid in times of crisis. ERCI’s philosophy is to identify the gaps of humanitarian aid and step in to assist in the most efficient and impactful manner. ERCI’s Search and Rescue program has assisted more than 46,000 refugees reach safety in Greece. Currently ERCI has there active programs working with refugees in Greece in Education, Refugee Camp Coordination and Search and Rescue.
