Taawon (Welfare Association), with support from Malala Fund, is implementing a new project to help restore safe and inclusive learning opportunities for children in Gaza at a critical time, as children continue to face severe disruptions to their education, protection, and psychosocial well-being due to the ongoing aggression, widespread displacement, and the destruction of learning spaces.
"Children in Gaza have had everything disrupted: their homes, their routines, and their sense of safety. What this project does, with support from Malala Fund, is give them back something essential: a place to learn, to be cared for, and to simply be children. At Taawon, we believe that investing in education and psychosocial support during a crisis is not separate from humanitarian action — it is at the heart of it.” Dr. Tareq Emtairah, Director General, Taawon
This initiative forms part of Taawon’s “Gaza Deserves” approach, which guides the organization’s response to the crisis through three interconnected pillars: immediate humanitarian relief, social and economic recovery, and longer-term resilience. Within this framework, investment in education and psychosocial support is not secondary to the response — it is a core part of it.
Through this project, Taawon and its local implementing partners are operating and strengthening one Temporary Learning Space (TLS) in the Middle Area of Gaza. The TLS serves as space for education, psychosocial support, and resilience-building. It provides structured non-formal education for 448 conflict-affected children aged 6 to 12, including 245 boys and 203 girls. Learning activities cover core subjects such as Arabic, English, Mathematics, and Science, and are integrated with life skills, emotional support, and child-centered programming designed to help children rebuild confidence, strengthen peer relationships, and develop healthy coping strategies.
The project also addresses children’s protection and well-being through a dedicated Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) component. This includes group-based psychosocial activities, individual support for children requiring more focused care, family counseling, and targeted specialized interventions. The approach is grounded in the understanding that education in emergencies is not only about returning children to learning, but also about supporting their healing, safety, and dignity after prolonged exposure to bombardment, forced displacement, and loss.
Local educators and TLS staff are employed and compensated through the project, contributing both to service delivery and to the livelihoods of community members who have themselves been displaced. All educators and coordinators receive capacity-building in key areas including Psychological First Aid, Social Emotional Learning, Trauma-informed Teaching, Accelerated Learning, Child Protection, and Explosive Ordnance Risk Education. These trainings ensure that children are supported by prepared, responsive adults capable of maintaining safe and inclusive learning environments in line with education in emergencies standards.
Community engagement is embedded throughout the project. Local committees, families, and community actors play an active role in supporting children’s continued participation, reinforcing protective practices, and affirming the importance of education as a right that cannot be suspended, even in the most difficult circumstances. Children also receive essential learning materials to support their participation in the TLS.
By partnering with the Malala Fund on this initiative, Taawon reaffirms its commitment to ensuring that children in Gaza are not left behind, and that their right to learn, recover, and build a future is upheld, regardless of the circumstances they face.
About Malala Fund
Malala Fund was founded by Malala and Ziauddin Yousafzai to champion every girl’s right to 12 years of education. Malala Fund invests in civil society organizations who are challenging the systems, policies and practices that prevent girls from going to school in their communities. Malala Fund complements their efforts by advocating to expand and protect girls’ right to secondary education and secure resources for education.
