Across Asia, families are pulling children from school or keeping them out to work as cash-strapped economies bite into education funding and school meal programs.

In floating lake communities, geography and mobility shape how children access schooling, showing resilience amid waterborne life and unique transport routines.

The report is presented as a photo gallery with AP editors and reporters, including Sopheng Cheang, and includes notes on funding and standards.

The piece links war, energy prices, climate challenges, and poverty to increasing risks to education for vulnerable children worldwide.

Education access is a regional issue in Asia, illustrated by Cambodia’s floating villages, where economic pressures and fuel costs influence schooling.

Rising fuel prices tied to regional conflicts are raising transport and operating costs for schools, disproportionately affecting the poorest families and potentially driving dropouts.

The story situates school access within the broader Tonle Sap life, outlining the logistical and family-life challenges faced by children there.

Climate impacts, floods and droughts, and the risk of child marriage or exploitation intensify as families triage basics like food and housing over schooling.

The report emphasizes descriptive rather than unfolding narrative details, with no additional critical dates in the excerpt.

Experts warn war could push up to 23.4 million more children into poverty and out of school by year’s end, with 80% in Africa and Asia, deepening gender disparities.

Global agencies including UNICEF and Save the Children warn of long-term harm to education progress and poverty reduction from these pressures.

School meal programs, such as WFP meals, may be disrupted, increasing dropout risk and affecting nutrition and cognitive development.