#aaeth ,,congress  #ast ,session  ,h4   
,r4 #bdjh  ,,an ,,act  ,to enhance the  
transparency1 improve the coordination1 
and intensify the impact of assistance  
to support access to primary and        
secondary education for displaced       
children and persons1 including women   
and girls1 and for other purposes4  #a4 
,short title ,this ,act may be cited as 
the ,protecting ,girls' ,access to      
,education in ,vulnerable ,settings ,act
 or the ,protecting ,girls' ,access to  
,education ,act4  #b4 ,findings         
,congress finds the following3  7#a7 ,at
 the start of #bjag1 more than #fe      
million people have been displaced by   
disasters and conflicts around the      
world1 the highest number recorded since
 the end of ,world ,war ,,ii1 of which  
more than #ba million people are        
refugees4  7#b7 ,more than half of the  
population of displaced people are      
children and1 according to the ,united  
,nations ,high ,commissioner for        
,refugees1 nearly #d million school-aged

 displaced children lack access to      
primary education4  7#c7 ,education     
offers socioeconomic opportunities1     
psychological stability1 and physical   
protection for displaced people1        
particularly for women and girls1 who   
might otherwise be vulnerable to severe 
forms of trafficking in persons 7as such
 term is defined in section #ajc7i7 of  
the ,trafficking ,victims ,protection   
,act of #bjjj 7#bb ,u4,s4,c4 #gajc7i7771
 child marriage1 sexual exploitation1 or
 economic disenfranchisement1 and       
contributes to long-term recovery and   
economic opportunities for displaced    
people and for the communities hosting  
them4  7#d7 ,displaced children face    
considerable barriers to accessing      
educational services and1 because the   
duration of such displacement is1 on    
average1 #bj years1 such children may   
spend the entirety of their childhood   
without access to such services4  7#e7  
,despite the rising need for such       
services1 less than #b percent of global

 emergency aid was directed toward      
educational services in #bjaf4  #c4     
,sense of ,congress ,it is the sense of 
,congress that--  7#a7 it is critical to
 ensure that children1 particularly     
girls1 displaced by conflicts overseas  
are able to access educational services 
because such access can combat extremism
 and reduce exploitation and poverty2   
and  7#b7 the educational needs of      
vulnerable women and girls should be    
considered in the design1               
implementation1 and evaluation of       
related ,united ,states foreign         
assistance policies and programs4  #d4  
,statement of policy ,it is the policy  
of the ,united ,states to-- 7#a7 partner
 with and encourage other countries1    
public and private multilateral         
institutions1 and nongovernmental and   
civil society organizations1 including  
faith-based organizations and           
organizations representing parents and  
children1 to support efforts to ensure  
that displaced children have access to  

safe primary and secondary education2   
7#b7 work with donors to enhance        
training and capacity-building for the  
governments of countries hosting        
significant numbers of displaced people 
to design1 implement1 and monitor       
programs to effectively address barriers
 to such education2  7#c7 incorporate   
into the design and implementation of   
such programs measures to evaluate the  
impact of the programs on girls1 with   
respect to the reduction of child       
marriage1 gender-based violence1 and    
severe forms of trafficking in persons  
7as such term is defined in section     
#ajc7i7 of the ,trafficking ,victims    
,protection ,act of #bjjj 7#bb ,u4,s4,c4
 #gajc7i7772 and  7#d7 coordinate with  
the governments of countries hosting    
significant numbers of displaced people 
to-- 7,a7 promote the inclusion of      
displaced children into the educational 
systems of such countries2 and  7,b7    
develop innovative approaches to        
providing safe primary and secondary    

educational opportunities in            
circumstances in which such inclusion is
 not possible or appropriate1 such as   
schools that permit more children to be 
educated by extending the hours of      
schooling and expanding the number of   
teachers4  #e4 ,united ,states          
assistance to support educational       
services for displaced children  7a7 ,in
 general ,the ,secretary of ,state and  
the ,administrator of the ,united       
,states ,agency for ,international      
,development are authorized to          
prioritize and advance ongoing efforts  
to support programs that--  7#a7 provide
 safe primary and secondary education   
for displaced children2  7#b7 build the 
capacity of institutions in countries   
hosting displaced people to prevent     
discrimination against displaced        
children1 especially displaced girls1   
who seek access to such education2 and  
7#c7 help increase the access of        
displaced children1 especially displaced
 girls1 to educational1 economic1 and   

entrepreneurial opportunities1 including
 through the governmental authorities   
responsible for educational or youth    
services in such host countries4  7b7   
,coordination with multilateral         
organizations ,the ,secretary and the   
,administrator are authorized to        
coordinate with the ,world ,bank1       
appropriate agencies of the ,united     
,nations1 and other relevant            
multilateral organizations to work with 
governments in other countries to       
collect relevant data1 disaggregated by 
age and gender1 on the ability of       
displaced people to access education and
 participate in economic activity1 in   
order to improve the targeting1         
monitoring1 and evaluation of related   
assistance efforts4  7c7 ,coordination  
with private sector and civil society   
organizations ,the ,secretary and the   
,administrator are authorized to work   
with private sector and civil society   
organizations to promote safe primary   
and secondary education for displaced   

children4  #f4 ,report ,during the      
#e-year period beginning on the date of 
the enactment of this ,act1 the         
,secretary and the ,administrator shall 
include in any report or evaluation     
submitted to ,congress relating to a    
foreign assistance program for natural  
or manmade disaster relief or response  
the following information 7to the extent
 practicable and appropriate73  7#a7 ,a 
breakdown of the beneficiaries of such  
program by location1 age1 gender1       
marital status1 and school enrollment   
status4  7#b7 ,a description of how such
 program benefits displaced people4     
7#c7 ,a description of any primary or   
secondary educational services supported
 by such program that specifically      
address the needs of displaced girls4   
,passed the ,house of ,representatives  
,october #c1 #bjag4;,clerk4