Global aid is likely to decline by up to US$2 billion from 2018 to 2022 as a result of recession caused by COVID-19, entailing a 12-percent fall in international support for education, said UNESCO on Friday.

The U.N. deputy chief said Friday there is an "alarming" crisis in education, pointing to the 258 million children under the age of 17 who are not going to school — and only 49 percent completing secondary education.