The approaching of the new school year is an important and unique occasion for all families around the world, as it means a transition between educational stages and the acquisition of new knowledge, information, skills and capabilities. However, in Yemen, and with the ongoing war continuing for the eighth year, the school year has become a burden for Yemeni families; Because of the educational expenses that most parents are not be able to afford due to the deteriorated economic conditions that are getting worse every day.
In view of the interruption of civil servants' salaries, the high prices of food commodities, and the economic and living crises, the new school year comes as a warning that a real catastrophe threatens the future of an entire generation, and may extend to future generations.
After the war had its impact on education, its effects extended to all aspects of Yemenis' life, and led to the destruction of more than 2,900 schools (at least one out of every 4 schools), partially damaged or used for non-educational purposes as a result of 7 years of conflict in the country according to the latest UNICEF update on the state of education in Yemen. Thus, one of the major consequences is that more than two million students are out of school.
Students turned to workers
A large percentage of students dropped out in favor of the labor market, as the economic situation prompted many families to withdraw their children from schools and push them to markets; to help their families meet the essential living needs, such as food, drink and housing, in light of crazy and unlimited price hikes of goods and services of all kinds. In addition to the successive crises that make it difficult to overcome its effects on families' income and living standards. One of the most important consequences of dropping out is the upsurge in poverty, starvation rates and deprivation of basic rights, the first of which is the right to education.
The annual school fees requested from a student in the basic classes reach at least 100,000 Yemeni riyals ($180) and some schools charge much more than this amount, while the preparatory stage reaches more than 150 thousand riyals, and doubles this amount for the secondary stage in private and non-governmental schools.
Saeed Al-Ariqi, a father of five children, all of whom are in different educational stages, the eldest of whom is in the third level at university, complains about his failure to provide for his children’s learning requirements, expenditures and is thinking of postponing the enrollment of his son, who recently graduated from high school, at the university, and pushing him to work in order to save some money so that he can join university next year.
The father, who works as an evening shift taxi driver in addition to his morning work in one of the government bodies, which has not paid his salary for eight years, is thinking - according to his interview with "Khuyut" - about setting up a small business for himself or heading towards e-commerce in an attempt to improve his living income and providing better educational options for his children.
For his part, the educational and social researcher, Mohammad Al-Hamdani, told "Khuyut" that government education quality in Yemen has completely decreased in view of the absence of teachers after the interruption of their salaries since the beginning of the war. According to UNICEF, more than two-thirds of teachers, or nearly 172,000 teachers, have not received their salaries since 2016 or have quit teaching in search of other income-generating sources.
Heavy burdens
Mr. Amin Abdullah, an educator and deputy school manager, in his interview with "Khuyut", based on his personal observations and his close involvement in the educational situation, believes that education in Yemen has become one of the biggest concerns of families in the country, and that the beginning of the school year has become one of the heaviest burdens, like other occasions, such as (Ramadan, Eid holidays, and even religious and national occasions) under the current circumstances, which have become additional loads.
Abdullah, as a school deputy and educator, notes that many Yemeni parents and families have become convinced that government schools are no longer qualified for learning, and prefer to resort to the most difficult option, which is private education, in search of quality education for their children despite its high cost and very exaggerated fees.
The annual school fees requested from a student in the basic classes reach at least 100,000 Yemeni riyals ($180) and some schools charge much more than this amount, while the preparatory stage reaches more than 150 thousand riyals, and doubles this amount for the secondary stage in private and non-governmental schools.
Consequently, these exorbitant learning fees make many parents of school students in very difficult situations because of their failure to pay the monthly installments or delay payment, as well as other costs of education, such as school uniforms and textbooks, which are also sold for more than 10,000 Yemeni riyals ($18) per school year, after it was distributed free of charge, in addition to the costs of stationery, bags, and transportation, which continue to rise unremittingly.
On August 8, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) said that 8.1 million Yemeni children need emergency educational assistance, and that this is a huge upturn in the number of those eligible for support, compared to about 1.1 million Yemeni children before the war, calling for the need to stop the war so that children can enjoy their childhood.
Investment schools
Many educators consider that the decline and deterioration of the government educational process was a natural result of the ongoing war in the country, which paved the way for investment market in private education. Moreover, they believe that private schools are not abided by the educational system and law regulating it (the Law Regulating Private and National Education Institutions), which gives many investors the right to establish private schools with capabilities that support the development of education. Nonetheless, it is noticeable that these schools treat education as a business, trying to make as much money as possible with their tuition fees that exceed the financial ability of many families.
Further, the educator Elham Ahmed spoke about the absence of supervision and the failure to execute the laws the regulate the private education in Yemen, which caused the increase in the spread of private schools in Yemen. Speaking to "Khuyut", Ahmed said, "The poor educational outcomes in public schools have contributed to the increase in the number of enrollments in private schools, which exploit Yemenis by increasing tuition fees."
Despite this, the majority of teachers in private schools constantly complain about the low salaries, as some of them receive about 30,000 Yemeni riyals ($54) per month, while many schools are looking for high school graduates or fresh graduates who accept to work for them in return for poor wages.
Future of the education
Some families in Yemen have begun to view education as a luxury and a waste of time in a country where even graduates no longer have a place in the labor market. Unemployment rates are increasing day after day, according to the educational director, Qaid Al-Hada, who said, in his interview with "Khuyut", that with the beginning of the new school year, urgent questions are posing themselves before the conflicting parties in the country: What is the future of education in Yemen?
Al-Hadda called for the necessity of finding inevitable solutions that deviate education from political battles, and work on the development of economic recovery plans, and the re-disbursement of suspended teachers' salaries. In addition to spreading awareness of the significance of education, and encouraging families to send their children to school as one of the most important responsibilities of the educational authorities in Yemen.
