Collapse of Education and Conflict-driven States in South Asia: A Detailed Analysis of Role of MDGs and SDGs

Abstract

We live in an age where education is considered as a universally recognised fundamental right and an important objective of the development of the world and yet millions of children living in certain conflict-driven countries are stuck in an educational distress that alarms to put them in an infinite loop of conflict, instability and poverty. This paper targets the examination of the issues which has led to the disconnection between multiple international educational commitments like Millennium Development Goals and Sustainable Development Goals from the brutal realities of different countries in the South Asian region like Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. These nations have been not only been experiencing their own unique issues of political instability and corruption but also economic disasters, natural calamities, institutional failure and many more, which ultimately explains how this fragility has demolished the educational infrastructure, leading to total collapse of hopes for the future generations to enjoy their fundamental right to learn and grow. This paper seeks to demonstrate by the analysis of these three states that although the international community has produced thorough and detailed frameworks for addressing educational difficulties by these governments, there is still a significant implementation gap. The paper finally calls for a fundamental reconstruction of how education is protected and provided in contexts of complete failure and fragility, arguing that current approaches, despite the evolution from MDGs to SDGs, fail to adequately address the complex interrelation between political instability, security threats, economic collapse and educational access.