“I just want to learn”: a Somali refugee girl’s return to school in Yemen

ADEN, Yemen — In the Al-Basateen district of Aden, where narrow streets are home to some of the most vulnerable refugee and displaced communities in Yemen, 13-year-old Rahma had one wish: to go back to school.

Rahma Ahmed lives in Aden with her family, nine people in total, where daily life is defined by financial strain. When the family could no longer afford the basics needed to send her to class, a uniform, a bag, textbooks, Rahma stopped attending school. The weeks turned into months. The longer she was out, the harder it became to imagine going back.

“I just want to learn,” she said. “That is all I wanted.”

Rahma is among the thousands of refugee and asylum-seeker children in Yemen for whom the cost of basic school supplies is the barrier between education and exclusion. According to the 2026 Yemen Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan, more than 4.5 million children are estimated to be out of school across the country, among them thousands of refugee children who face compounded barriers including displacement, poverty, and limited documentation.

With support made possible in part by Islamic Relief USA, Rahma was enrolled in an accelerated education programme at Al-Ghafqi School in Al-Basateen. She received a new school uniform, a complete school bag, and all required educational materials.

“I was able to go back to school. Now I feel like I belong there.” — Rahma, 13, Al-Ghafqi School, Aden

The change was immediate. Rahma returned to her classroom with the materials she needed. She moved through the accelerated curriculum steadily, catching up on months of missed learning. Her mother, who had watched her daughter’s confidence fade during the months at home, saw it return.

Al-Ghafqi School is part of UNHCR’s education network in Aden, which serves refugee, displaced, and host community children in one of the country’s most densely populated urban areas.

This year, with Islamic Relief USA’s support, UNHCR’s education response across Yemen reaches well beyond individual stories like Rahma’s. More than 4,350 children will receive essential items to attend school. Three schools have been rehabilitated to create safer, more functional learning environments. Ninety-seven educational professionals are receiving financial support to sustain consistent instruction, keeping qualified teachers in classrooms at a time when many have abandoned the profession due to economic hardship. And 390 out-of-school children, like Rahma, are being supported to restart their education through targeted re-enrolments.

So far, 489 refugee and asylum-seeker students have received essential school items, uniforms, shoes, stationery, books, and school bags, ensuring that financial hardship would not keep children out of the classroom.

Yemen hosts more than 63,000 refugees and asylum-seekers, the majority from the Horn of Africa. Somali refugees like Rahma and her family face intersecting vulnerabilities: displacement, limited livelihood options, and dependence on humanitarian assistance for access to services that others take for granted. For girls in particular, time out of school frequently becomes permanent.

“This support gave me more than school supplies. It gave me back my future.” — Rahma, on what the assistance meant to her.

Rahma is now attending Al-Ghafqi School regularly. She participates in her classes and speaks about her ambitions with clarity. She wants to finish her education. She wants to work. She wants her younger siblings to stay in school, too.

For a thirteen-year-old refugee girl in Aden, that is not a small thing to ask. With targeted support at the right moment, it became possible.