With the ongoing years of war in Yemen, the suffering of teachers due to harsh living and economic conditions has become increasingly evident. This is due to the interruption of salaries and the devaluation of the currency, coupled with the marginalization they experience from official authorities and local communities.
The suffering of teachers has become a topic of discussion among educational and community circles throughout Yemen. This issue has even reached the ears of students interested in studying educational majors, serving as a warning bell that alerts them to the bleak and miserable future awaiting them if they choose such a path.
The dire living conditions caused by years of war have affected all social groups, but teachers have been the most affected due to the meager salaries they receive, which are insufficient to meet the living requirements of their families. All this is amid soaring prices of essential food items, consumer goods, and all necessities of life, as a natural result of the depreciation of the local currency (the Yemeni Riyal), which is rapidly losing its purchasing power against other currencies traded in money exchange shops and banks on an almost daily basis. The government authorities have not yet found suitable solutions and remedies to curb this unnatural collapse.
Moreover, the tragedy of teachers in Yemen has cast a shadow over high school graduates who are about to enter university. Many of those who previously aspired to become teachers have abandoned their desire to enroll in education colleges with their various majors (scientific and theoretical), fearing they will meet the same fate as today's teachers. As a result, some of them have turned to other non-educational university majors, while others have refrained from continuing their university education and turned to the labor market to support their families, and some of them have joined the battlefronts to earn salaries four times higher than those of teachers and some civil sector employees.
Hardships and Lack of Employment Opportunities
Experts in the educational sector in Yemen discuss the reasons behind students' reluctance to pursue educational majors. Professor Dr. Riyadh Abdulrahman Manqoush, Dean of the Faculty of Education at Seiyun University in Wadi Hadhramaut (eastern Yemen), affirms that the difficult living conditions and low teacher salaries have led to a decline in student enrollment in colleges of education, not only in Hadhramaut but across all Yemeni universities.
In this exclusive statement to "Khuyut," Dr. Riyadh Manqoush added that recent years have seen a weak turnout for majors in education faculties and a reluctance among students to enroll. He pointed out that the primary reasons for this reluctance are the difficult living conditions faced by most families amid the ongoing war and crisis that have gripped the country for years. He continued, "Many parents can no longer afford the costs of education and transportation for their sons and daughters," noting that many high school graduates have turned to work instead of continuing their university education.
Dr. Manqoush further explained by saying, "In addition, the low salaries of teachers generally have made new students feel disheartened and discouraged as they witness the suffering of teachers and their insufficient salaries. Therefore, many of them dismiss the idea of enrolling in education faculties and are convinced that becoming teachers will not provide them with a decent life."
“It is imperative for the government to elevate the status and esteem of teachers and respond to their demands for salary increases that align with the current living conditions. This increase should compensate for the value lost due to the currency's depreciation or, at the very least, provide them with incentives that align with living conditions and rising prices.”
For his part, Dr. Ghassan Nasser Mohammed Ubadi, Director General of Media and Public Relations at Abyan University, believes that one of the main reasons for students' reluctance to pursue educational majors is the suspension of recruitment in the education sector since the beginning of the war in 2015, rendering graduates unemployed in the absence of continued recruitment.
In this exclusive statement to "Khuyut," Dr. Ubadi adds: "A teacher must prepare a teaching plan, daily lessons, teach large numbers of students—sometimes more than a hundred in one classroom—prepare and correct exams, and grade results, among other tasks. Despite all this, his efforts are neither rewarded nor appreciated by the community or the government."
Dr. Ubadi also noted other reasons, including that parents prefer their boys and daughters to enroll in vocational faculties such as medicine, engineering, and computer science, which have better acceptance in the job market. Additionally, most male students join military camps and brigades where soldiers receive salaries in foreign currency equivalent to seven times that of a teacher's salary.
As for Mr. Mohammed Hussein Al-Duba, the Director General of Educational Media at the Ministry of Education, he states in an interview with "Khuyut" that "there are several reasons for students' reluctance to pursue educational majors, including the low salary received by teachers, especially after the war, or the suspension of salary increases since 2011. Meanwhile, other sectors such as oil and the military have seen their salaries increase in line with the political situation in the country."
Al-Duba further adds: "Another reason is the poor quality of high school graduates, which leads to a state of dropout, with graduates preferring to go directly to the labor market. The Ministry of Education is working to address this issue, but it is important to remember that the ongoing war remains the primary reason for many students joining the battlefronts, as the salaries of soldiers in military formations are very tempting, equaling three or four times the income of government teachers."
Unfair Distribution Between Sectors
Dr. Riyadh Manqoush believes that one of the most important solutions to address students' reluctance towards educational faculties is the necessity for the government to elevate the status and esteem of teachers and respond to their demands for salary increases that align with the current living conditions. This increase should compensate for the value lost due to the currency's depreciation or, at the very least, provide them with incentives that align with the living conditions and rising prices."
In his concluding remarks to "Khuyut," Dr. Manqoush urged government and non-government entities and civil society organizations to "support students in enrolling in education faculties and provide them with financial assistance to overcome the financial challenges preventing them from continuing their studies."
In turn, Mr. Mohammed Al-Duba also said that the end of the war and the return of the country to normalcy, along with the fair distribution of salaries and rights across all sectors, would undoubtedly be the solution to encourage students to return to the educational faculties.
He further adds, "Another solution that could increase student enrollment rate in education faculties is to grant teachers their deserved allowances, as most students used to head to education faculties because the teacher's salary was the highest, especially with the enforcement of the Teacher Law."
Mr. Al-Duba concludes by saying, "These issues would be fully addressed if the war were to end because these reasons are war-related phenomena and repercussions. In short, we can say that the reluctance of students to enroll in educational faculties is due to the war or the political situation post-2011."
