Cambridge and Alsama Partner to Expand University Access for Refugees and Displaced Youths

Omolabake Fasogbon

Cambridge University Press and Assessment and Alsama Project have signed an agreement to develop and expand a new qualification designed to help refugees and displaced youths access universities, vocational training, and employment in Nigeria and worldwide.

The agreement, signed at the Education World Forum in the presence of representatives from UNESCO and the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, will support the rollout of the G12++ qualification—a secondary‑school‑leaver credential created for young people whose education has been disrupted by conflict and displacement.

Nigeria hosts about 3.6 million forcibly displaced persons, while globally there are roughly 117.3 million displaced people, including 49 million children.

The partners noted that only nine per cent of refugees worldwide have access to higher education, compared with a global average of 42 per cent.

The G12++ qualification was created by Alsama Project, an NGO operating in the Shatila refugee camp in Beirut, Lebanon, to provide displaced youths with recognised proof of learning outside formal school systems.

Jane Mann, Managing Director of Partnership for Education at Cambridge, said the initiative would help displaced youths regain access to education and employment opportunities.

“When young people are forced to leave school and flee, it’s not only their past they leave behind, but their future too. Working with Alsama Project, we will help them take back their futures through a new global qualification that will open pathways to universities, vocational programmes and employment,” she said.

Mann added that displaced youths in Nigeria and around the world need educational models that reflect their realities, noting that the world also needs their talents.

The first G12++ examination was held in February 2026 in the Shatila Refugee Camp, with many students earning the qualification after completing the programme.

Under the partnership, both organisations will further develop the qualification, expand delivery through NGO partners globally, build recognition among universities and employers, engage governments and international bodies, and seek funding support for wider implementation.

Meike Ziervogel, co‑founder and CEO of Alsama Project, described the partnership as a major step for displaced youths whose education outside formal systems is often unrecognised.

According to her, “the barrier has never been ability. What has been missing is recognition. The G12++ exists to change that.”

A Syrian refugee student, Wissal Al‑Jaber, said the qualification would help her pursue her ambition of studying psychology.

“I have not had the opportunity to complete a full education, but I deserve the same future opportunities as those who have. The G12++ gives me that,” she said.

Professor Bhaskar Vira of the University of Cambridge said the initiative demonstrated that quality assessment for displaced learners is achievable globally.

He described the G12++ as “a unique, transformative opportunity for refugee youths, universities and the global education community alike.”