AMMAN, Jordan -- Forty percent of children from five conflict-scarred Middle Eastern countries are not attending school, the United Nations agency for children said Thursday, warning that losing this generation will lead to more militancy, migration and a dim future for the region.
An estimated 13.7 million school-age children from Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Libya and Sudan are not in school, out of a total of 34 million, UNICEF said.
The dropout rate could increase to 50 percent in coming months as conflicts intensify, said Peter Salama, the agency's regional chief.
"We are on the verge of losing a generation of children in this region," he said. "We must act now or we will certainly regret the consequences."
He said UNICEF needs an additional $300 million this year to make a dent in the numbers and give more children access to education. The agency so far has received $140 million, or 40 percent of its 2015 appeal, for the education of displaced Syrians.
Thursday's report marks the first attempt to show the scope of the regional education crisis, Salama said.
The report said that education is increasingly being disrupted by fighting and the displacement of millions of people.