Antonio Guterres warned that the pandemic needs to be contained so children can return to school.

According to statistics from mid-July gathered by the UN, schools were completely closed in at least 160 countries, leave 1 billion students without education. Perhaps more importantly, however, is the fact that at least 40 million children around the world missing their pre-school years, a critical time in educational development. According to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, if schools aren’t back on track soon, an untold number of students could miss out on vital educational material.

“Getting students back into schools and learning institutions as safely as possible must be a top priority,” Guterres said, clarifying that containing the COVID-19 pandemic must come first.

“We already faced a learning crisis before the pandemic,” Guterres continued. “Now we face a generational catastrophe that could waste untold human potential, undermine decades of progress, and exacerbate entrenched inequalities.”

In order to expedite the return to school, Guterres has launched “Save our Future,” a promotional campaign with cooperation from UN agencies and education partners around the world. The campaign’s goals, in addition to a swift, safe reopening of schools, include developing new and creative means of teaching and ensuring those in remote countries and communities still have access to education.

Even with remote learning as an option, it is not a perfect solution; students with disabilities or complicated living situations may not be able to use a computer, or may not have steady internet access at all. “Despite the delivery of lessons by television, radio and online, and the best efforts of teachers and parents, many students remain out of reach,” Guterres said on the topic.

“We are at a defining moment for the world’s children and young people,” Guterres said. “The decisions that governments and partners take now will have lasting impact on hundreds of millions of young people, and on the development prospects of countries for decades to come.”