(5 October 2020) By late March 2020, educational institutions globally were partially or completely shut down to help contain the spread of COVID-19. Combined with similar approaches from businesses in addition to social distancing, masks and other measures, only temporary containment of the virus was achieved for many countries, COVID case counts resurging for many as restrictions were lifted. Today, hopes for summer and fall 'business as usual' for the world's students have been left unfulfilled. 

  • According to UNESCO, educational institutions in 52 countries were closed due to COVID-19 as of September 30, 2020.  Schools and universities in an additional 44 countries are partially closed.
  • Based on UNESCO estimates of the operational status of educational institutions and enrollment of students in pre-primary, primary, secondary, and tertiary education, we estimate that almost 1 billion learners today are directly affected by COVID-19 pandemic closures, which is more than half of all students globally.

Coronavirus Data and Insights

Live data and insights on Coronavirus around the world, including detailed statistics for the US, EU, and China — confirmed and recovered cases, deaths, alternative data on economic activities, customer behavior, supply chains, and more.

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