Educational Challenges in Yemen: How the Conflict Puts Education at Risk?

Written by Müge Çınar

What has been happening in Yemen since 2015?

Yemen has ancient roots at the Middle East, Asia, and Africa crossroads, and the Republic of Yemen is a relatively new established state. It was created in 1990 following the unification of communist South Yemen with North Yemen. 

The wave of protests in Yemen in 2011 was affected by the Arab Spring, Yemen has been suffering civil wars, jihadist violence, tribalism, and extreme poverty since then.

Furthermore, the suffering brought on by the current war since 2015 between a coalition led by Saudi Arabia and the Houthis, a Shia militia supported by Iran (World Bank, 2019). The Saudi-led coalition was provided logistical and intelligence support from the US, UK, and France. According to the UN, both sides in the war have committed war crimes. However, both sides refused the allegations (World Bank, 2023).

Long before the current crisis began, the politicization of education in Yemen was an issue. To begin with, neither a license nor any type of supervision was required for religious schools, which predate government-run public schools and higher education institutions (Nagi, 2021). Yet, the conflict exacerbated the collapse of education in the country which was already weak in its educational system.

In general, the North and the South each have their independent educational system (Taher et al., 2022). Each of the parties engaged prioritizes military development while ignoring every aspect of progress, such as education. To serve their own ideological and political objectives, each of these systems is making considerable changes to education, yet the quality of education is declining in both places. Children are unable to attend schools due to conflict, displacement, the spreading of diseases, lack of infrastructure, and gender discrimination.

A group of children, displaced by fighting in the Yemeni city of Hodediah, participate in catch-up classes in the Rabat camp near the Yemeni city of Aden. Photo by Peter Biro

Conflict-related Education Difficulties

Attacks against schoolchildren, teachers, and educational infrastructure, since the conflict started, have affected the educational system and millions of children’s access to learning opportunities. Yemen is experiencing a serious education crisis, which will have devastating long-term effects on children (Education in Yemen,  UNICEF, 2023).

Around 11 million Yemeni children require humanitarian aid, and more than 2.4 million school-age boys and girls are not attending school (UNICEF, 2023). Many families are unable to bring their children to school because of the cost of food and other school-related expenses (Battling Hunger and Ensuring Yemeni Children Can Get Back to School, 2023).

According to UNICEF statistics, more than two million children are not enrolled in school, and many millions require assistance to enrol, and more than 20% of all primary and secondary schools are closed (ICRC, 2022). Students and teachers have been killed or injured on their way to school. Numerous families are no longer sending their children to school, especially girls, due to the danger and financial effects of the conflict. The psychological effects of violence mitigate the educational performance of the children since many children have only ever known life in conflict. 

At least one out of every four educational facilities has been destroyed, damaged, or put to other uses over the past eight years. 58% of these schools are damaged by conflict and 30% are used as quarantine centres or occupied by armed groups (Save the Children International, Save the Children Yemen, 2021).

Under international humanitarian law, war parties are required to take all necessary precautions to safeguard civilians and civilian infrastructure. Long-lasting harm results from violence against students, educators, and institutions of higher learning. It also makes the education system harder to recover after the conflict.

Displacement Problem

Ongoing conflict forces people to move to other areas of the country. Displaced people have had their access to education cut off suddenly because of their displacements. The 1.5 million school-aged internally displaced children, the 870,495 girls and boys with disabilities, and the more than 2 million kids who are not in school are the most at risk (OCHA, 2023). Between September and October 2022, UNHCR and Deem for Development Organization renovated the classrooms at the schools with funding from a Quick Impact Project (QIP) (OCHA, 2023).

International organizations and communities are on a mission to reach children who need health and education assistance in the displaced and hard-to-reach places. OCHA, UNICEF, UNHCR, UNFPA, and others participated in the mission.

Lack of Access to Healthcare and WASH Facilities

Many people in Yemen also lack access to healthcare and nutrition services. 540,000 children live in a condition with acute malnutrition and insufficient health services. Water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) need for children are more common in the areas of new displacement and rural areas. Shelter and WASH assistance is the most important factor for children to pursue their education. In 2023, more than 8.6 million school-children will need assistance according to UNOCHA (OCHA, Issue 1, 2023).

The result of the war is damage to infrastructure and import disruption of fuel causing 61% of the Yemeni’s lack of access to water and 42% of the population to have not enough sanitation (OCHA, Issue 1, 2023). The sheer amount of time spent delivering water also harms the educational opportunities for children. With no choice but to go to the water points twice a day and carry plastic water containers on their heads, many children have been forced to quit school (OCHA, Issue 1, 2023).

The events to improve access to safe water were officially launched on February 2022 by IOM and YHF (OCHA, Issue 1, 2023). Many kids can go back to school and finish their education, particularly girls. The project also unlocks the ability of the people to engage in agriculture and other livelihood activities.

Spreading Diseases and Urgent Immunization of the Children

“The prolonged crisis and the lack of funding for the HRP threaten food insecurity, which could result in famine, disease outbreaks, and epidemics,” said Na’aem Al Khulaidi, program coordinator for the Tamdeen Youth Foundation (OCHA, Issue 2, 2023). For instance, polio has frighteningly returned to Yemen years after the country was declared free of the deadly illness.

Significant infectious disease outbreaks, including some that could have been prevented by vaccination, such as cholera, diphtheria, dengue, measles, and the reappearance of vaccine-derived polioviruses, were influenced by the conflict. Additionally, the COVID-19 pandemic has made the health condition even worse.

A new level of complication was introduced for the millions of school children in Yemen with the Covid-19 pandemic. For the millions of boys and girls in Yemen, After many cases of illness were reported in March 2020, schools closed and stayed closed for six months. Although the reopening the schools, many children had not gone back to classes (ECW in Yemen, 2023).

Having suffered from the Covid-19 pandemic, Yemen is dealing with rising cases of poliovirus. 228 children have been paralyzed due to poliovirus in 2021 in Yemen. In Yemen, there were about 22,000 cases of measles in 2022, with 161 casualties. There have been 9,418 cases reported in 2023, and 77 children have died (OCHA, Issue 1, 2023).

Low immunization rates of vaccine-preventable diseases among children are a very dangerous situation for them to attend school. Many children’s families are not able to afford hospitalization costs (OCHA, Issue 3, 2023). While there have been numerous polio and measles vaccination campaigns over the past two years in the southern regions, children in the northern regions are particularly in danger due to the ongoing deadlock over additional immunization efforts there (OCHA, Issue 3, 2023).

A group of children, displaced by fighting in the Yemeni city of Hodediah. Photo by Peter Biro

Gender Inequality

The patriarchally-oriented cultural and religious institutions continue to be the principal opponent of female education. The government and international organizations strive to alter the mindset of the current families to forbid their daughters from pursuing education by launching various campaigns in rural areas, reinforcing the social norms that they have built (Ballout, 2023). Nevertheless, dropouts of the school-girls are at risk of child marriage, while boys are recruited by armed groups.

The most affected gender by the displacement is females. Bureaucratic obstacles prohibit women to travel without a company of a close family member. This has created a great impact on women to access and pursue education (OCHA, Issue 1, 2023). The increase in mahram requirements and mostly AA-controlled areas worsened the gender gap in education, resulting in a wide gender gap in literacy and basic education.

The country’s economic struggle plays a part in gender inequality too. Getting a very minimum income affects Yemeni households’ purchasing power. Weak economical conditions affect women’s conditions and children’s education.  It will have a domino effect and raise the danger of gender-based violence and other abuses among women and girls. Children will have less access to school and more cases of family dissolution, child labour, child marriage, and child trafficking (OCHA, 2022).

Insufficient Incentives to the Teachers

Yemen’s education system is in danger of collapsing, which will have an impact on both school-age males and females. The conflict that has lasted for years, the economy’s downfall, and the COVID-19 pandemic have all restricted access to schooling. Structured learning is still impacted by the insufficient payment of teachers’ salaries.

Since 2016, the majority of teachers in governorates (or 61% of the teaching staff) have received poor allowances. When teachers are paid, the amounts are little and paid slowly, which disincentivizes them for work and forces them to look for side jobs to support their income (Education in Yemen, 2023). Also, most teachers lead to quitting their jobs which risks nearly four million children losing access to education (Nagi, 2021). Every year, a number of teachers and students flee from the country, and a large portion of these individuals are the most qualified ones.

Another important problem is that there are not sufficient teacher training programs, causing qualified teachers to remain very less. The gender gap between the teachers is also very wide. Teachers are mainly male with 80%, which creates a lack of female teachers.

Teachers as well as students have suffered from this constant struggle and even exploited it against one another. Teachers and students were recruited to collaborate with the tribes that were engaged in this conflict. Peace and education are being replaced by conflict and political beliefs that serve the interests of parties and tribes. The students quit school and decide to ally themselves with the tribes that will pay for their families basic needs. This includes teachers who have gone for years without receiving payment (Taher et al., 2022).

References

Ballout, A. (2023). Female Education in Yemen. Available at SSRN 4318578.

Battling Hunger and Ensuring Yemeni Children Can Get Back to School. (2023, February 1). World Bank. Retrieved May 26, 2023, from https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/feature/2023/02/01/battling-hunger-and-ensuring-yemeni-children-can-get-back-to-school

ECW in Yemen. (n.d.). Education Cannot Wait. Retrieved May 26, 2023, from https://www.educationcannotwait.org/our-investments/where-we-work/yemen

Education in Yemen. (n.d.). UNICEF. Retrieved May 26, 2023, from https://www.unicef.org/yemen/education

8 years of crushing conflict in Yemen. (2023, March 24). UNICEF. Retrieved May 26, 2023, from https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/8-years-crushing-conflict-yemen-leave-more-11-million-children-need-humanitarian

How and why to end the war in Yemen. (2019, May 7). Economist. Retrieved May 26, 2023, from https://www.economist.com/leaders/2017/11/30/how-and-why-to-end-the-war-in-yemen?utm_medium=cpc.adword.pd&utm_source=google&ppccampaignID=18151738051&ppcadID=&utm_campaign=a.22brand_pmax&utm_content=conversion.direct-response.anonymous&gclid=CjwKCAjwge2iBh

ICRC. (2022, October 13). Yemen: Conflict leaves millions of children without proper education. In News and Press Release. https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-conflict-leaves-millions-children-without-proper-education-enar

Nagi, A. (2021). Education in Yemen: Turning Pens into Bullets.

OCHA. (2022, April 30). Yemen Humanitarian Response Plan 2022. https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-humanitarian-response-plan-2022-april-2022

OCHA. (2023, January). Report: Yemen Humanitarian Update. (Issue 1). https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-humanitarian-update-issue-1-january-2023-enar

OCHA. (2023, February). Yemen Humanitarian Update. (Issue 2). https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-humanitarian-update-issue-2-february-2023-enar

OCHA. (2023, March). Yemen Humanitarian Update. (Issue 3).

Save the Children International, Save the Children Yemen. (2021, June). Report: Education in Crisis in Yemen.

Taher, A., Khan, Z., Alduais, A., & Muthanna, A. (2022). Intertribal conflict, educational development and education crisis in Yemen: A call for saving education. Review of Education, 10(3)(e3376).

Yemen: Why is the war there getting more violent? (2023, April 14). BBC. Retrieved May 26, 2023, from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-29319423

Featured image: Yemeni children play in the rubble of buildings destroyed in an air raid, Photo by Biro

Educational Challenges in Algeria: A work in progress

Written by Müge Çınar

Algeria to ease primary school programme. Photo by Magharebia

Algeria is known as the geographically largest country in Africa, located in northern Africa. This country may be divided into two separate parts, one is under the influence of the Mediterranean with the Atlas Mountains as known Tell and the other mostly consists of the desert situated in the western portion of the Shara. The total population that is living in Algeria is nearly 44 million.[1]

Algeria became independent after more than 130 years of colonization in 1962. During the colonization, the education system was constructed for mirroring that of France, mostly serviced by the French population and a relatively small Algerian elite. When the Algerian Independence War ended, nearly 90% of the population was illiterate. As a result, the country went into creating a new Algeria by following Arabization.[2]

In 1990, the expenditure on education was high, at 29.7% of the national budget. Education was put at the centre of rebuilding the country by creating a skilled force and people who share the same national consciousness[3]. Although their attempts of reforming the education system after the Second World, the progress in the education of the children remained insufficient. Accordingly, colonial history, gender, ethnicity, and religion formed the education opportunities for the children.[4]

Today, education at all levels is free in Algeria in the condition of passing the previous cycle. Social policy is applied by the state in the education sector, and this may be related to the democratic transition, although it’s debatable how successful it was[5]. The Algerian school system includes three cycles that are primary, middle and secondary school. Nine years of education from ages 6 to 14, the first two cycles are compulsory and the attendance rate is very high. Secondary education is also compulsory while having high numbers of drop-offs.

Main Challenges in Education

A bachelor’s degree is the minimum requirement for teaching, however, there are differences in teacher preparation programs and in-service training programs. Only 17% of primary school teachers have this certification, and nearly 70% of middle school teachers don’t have it. Furthermore, the educational system’s internal effectiveness falls far short of what society expects, as evidenced by the high rates of school dropout and repetition among students.[6]

Poorly maintained facilities, and a lack of teachers and classroom space, especially in underprivileged communities, are examples of inadequate infrastructure. The lack of regulations and educational facilities restricts pre-primary education. Numerous students are required to repeat grades, especially at the lower secondary level, which motivates them to drop out.

Low educational quality is caused by a grading system that measures how test takers perform in contrast to their peers rather than how much information they know, by instruction that prioritizes content over learning, and by the absence of participation from important stakeholders. International test results are 20% below the worldwide average.[7] Many of the children who are not in school are disabled children. Specialist centres are scarce, and attempts to integrate students into regular classes fall short.

Economic Disparity

Nearly 2% of boys in primary school age are out of school, and it is nearly the same rate for girls. The disparity in genders gets wider in secondary school; 17% male youth and 14% of female youth never attend school. In both primary and secondary schools, the widest disparity can be realized between the poorest and richest children who are out of school. While attendance at primary school by the poorest children drops by 1% compared to the richest ones, it declines by 20% in secondary education level considering the poor economic conditions of the families. It shows how economic conditions hinder children to reach their main right to get an education. Despite the social policies of the state, most of the children in Algeria are unable to get a basic level of education due to inadequate economic conditions.[8]

Discriminatory socioeconomic characteristics play a huge role in education in the country. Household wealth, social differences, regional economic disparities and the mother’s educational level are the predominant factors that affect educational imbalance in Algeria. There is a crucial need for incentives by the government for children who can’t afford education or for children who have to work in order to support their families. On the other hand, regional and social differences have decreased, according to an analysis of developments over the past ten years. The equality of the Algerian educational system has improved as a result.[9] Yet, more investment is needed to create homogeneous economic levels in every region to solve educational disparities between children.

Bejaia University. Photo by Vermondo.

Spending on Education

Algeria’s economy suffered from a blow to the government budget due to the country’s oil-dependent economy. The struggle in the economy started in 2014 with the drop in global oil prices. Dependency on oil and gas export, rather than investing in other sectors, put Algeria in a vulnerable situation due to the breakdown of the trade during Covid-19.[10] Moreover, this situation contributed a multidimensional poverty that also affected education in a large dimension. Education spending on education dropped from 7.3% to 6.1% due to the pandemic. Hopefully, spending on education increased to 7% in 2020 and be back to normal levels before the pandemic.[11]

Despite the country providing nine years of mandatory and free education for all levels of schooling, Algeria still needs to improve some objectives to provide quality education, better living conditions and low unemployment by prioritizing its GDP spending on education.

High Rates of Non-Enrollment and Drop-Outs

According to data from UNICEF on the state of education, net enrolment levels are as follows: in elementary education, 98% of boys and 97% of girls are enrolled; in middle and high school, 57% of boys and 65% of girls are enrolled.[12] These statistics make it obvious that basic levels of participation are sufficient, but it requires much more growth. While primary school attendance is nearly the same for both genders, It changes after middle school when the attendance of boys at school is less than girls.

There are nearly 8.5 million children receiving an education in the three stages of education. According to the report, about 1 million Algerian children between the ages of 5 and 14 (or 15% of this age group) are impacted by various non-enrollment factors. Primary school attendance is high. On the other hand, at the secondary education level, half of them are not in school, and the other half are enrolled but in danger of dropping out before finishing the cycle.[13]

While participation in basic education is a huge problem to solve, drop-outs of school children is another critical issue to be concerned about. According to the Algerian League for Defence of Human Rights, 400,000 children drop out of school yearly, while 25,000 continue to get professional training. School dropouts occur mostly in the countryside due to the remoteness of schools and high rates of poverty. It is important to add that some regions are poorly equipped with water, heating and electricity that make getting an education impossible for children. Also, the classrooms are inadequate which leads to over crowdedness in classrooms. These are the main discouragements of children from getting an education and 4.7% of them drop out of school as a result.[14]

The Language Barrier

After its independence from France, the country pursued the usage of the French language at the institutions and the administration of business, despite the wide application of the Arabization policy. Today the official language of Algeria is Arabic and Tamazight, and Berber was also recognized as a national language in 2002. President Tebboune announced in June 2022 that the government took a step toward language transition into English in primary schools too.[15] He points out the universality of the English language to learn by children for their benefit, while others have criticised this transition as political agenda related to the history of the country.

In the early years of the Republic, especially under Houari Boumediene’s rule, Arabisation policies dominated the implementation of education policies. The law was applied to generalise using Arabic in 1991.[16] Implementing Arabisation to the education sector, academies and workers failed to switch to the Arabic language successfully. Also, Algeria’s ethnically diverse population was damaged by this transition.

Today, once again Algeria find itself in an intervention in language transition despite other challenges in the education sector waiting to be solved. With the decision of replacing French with English, a drastic change has been made and this situation will affect more than 20,000 schools across the country in 2023. Under the curriculum in 2022, English is taught at secondary school, while children at nine years old start with French.[17] Algerian children are being left unable to continue academically with a single language due to the unclarity of provisions in the transition into English in schools. This will also hinder the future workforce to form a single language to carry the work.

Higher education started to offer English in many degrees, while some of them remain taught in French. The main question is; Are there enough qualified academicians and teachers to pursue the language transition policy?

Low Qualified Staff in Higher Education

The students who attended higher education were composed of 1.5 million in 2020. In fact, women had a greater gross enrolment rate in higher education than males did.[18] 41% of females and 19% of males attended higher education, according to MICS data of UNESCO in 2019. This trend indicates that males are more likely to drop school than females in Algeria.[19] Poverty plays a huge role in gender inequality in education, male children are likely to be child-labour to support their families and themselves. Also, males tend to repeat classes more than females, and their risk of failing in classes to complete their education is higher.

The qualitative improvement of teaching in the higher education institutions is a must. Only 28% of the academic staff in the universities are holding doctorates. The government-funded programmes for doctoral students to study abroad are being negotiated. The British Council and the Ministry are working together on a large-scale postgraduate study programme for people who want to study abroad.[20] Hopefully, this would help facilitate the reform of the higher education system.

Sahrawi Children in the Refugee Camps

Forgotten refugee crisis: Sahrawi refugees in Algeria. Photo by AMMILOUIZA LOUIZA AMMI

More than 173,000 Sahrawi refugees currently live in five camps located in Tindouf province, Algeria. These people were displaced more than 45 years after fleeing the conflict. The children who live in the camps are suffering from food security, health conditions, inadequate protection and most importantly lack of education.[21]

Nearly 98% of the children are getting primary school education, and the illiteracy rate is 4%. Yet, secondary and grad school educations are not provided in the camps. Each camp consists of six primary schools and two middle schools with very low incentives and low resources. Sahrawi students are able to attend secondary schools and universities for free, but most of them are not able to cover travel and living expenses for moving to other cities. A number of male students who move out to study, while it’s not possible for the female students to do so.[22]

The 2021-2025 five-year education strategy for Sahrawi refugees in Algeria was launched by UNHCR, UNICEF, and WFP in November 2021 with the goal of improving Sahrawi refugee children’s and adolescents’ inclusive access to high-quality education. 244 kids with physical and cognitive disabilities are also given Special Needs Education (SNE) in 10 SNE centres spread around the camps. Children who are refugees are supported by UNHCR by giving them books, school supplies, and teaching aids to promote a secure learning environment.[23]

 

References

Footnotes

[1]Encyclopedia Britannica

https://www.britannica.com/place/Algeria

[2] Durham, B. (2021). Primary Education and the French Army During the Algerian War of Independence. In: Beier, J.M., Tabak, J. (eds) Childhoods in Peace and Conflict. Rethinking Peace and Conflict Studies. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.

[3] Rose, M. (2015). Education in North Africa since independence. In Paper commissioned for the Hammamet Conference. London: British Council.

[4] Durham, B. (2021). Primary Education and the French Army During the Algerian War of Independence. In: Beier, J.M., Tabak, J. (eds) Childhoods in Peace and Conflict. Rethinking Peace and Conflict Studies. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.

[5] https://www.arab-reform.net/publication/social-policy-in-algeria-a-historical-and-ideological-background/

[6] Education Data Center, Algeria: National Education Profile

https://www.epdc.org/sites/default/files/documents/EPDC_NEP_2018_Algeria.pdf

[7] WorldBank

https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SE.XPD.TOTL.GD.ZS?end=2020&locations=DZ&start=1979&view=chart

[8] Education Data Center, Algeria: National Education Profile

https://www.epdc.org/sites/default/files/documents/EPDC_NEP_2018_Algeria.pdf

[9] UNICEF, Country Report: Algeria (2014)

https://www.unicef.org/mena/media/6526/file/Algeria%20Country%20Report%20on%20OOSC%20Summary_EN.pdf%20.pdf

[10] https://www.arab-reform.net/publication/social-policy-in-algeria-a-historical-and-ideological-background/

[11] World Bank

https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SE.XPD.TOTL.GB.ZS?locations=DZ

[12] Tiliouine, H. (2015). Children’s Worlds National Report Algeria. Journal of Algerian Studies, 3, 48-70.

[13]  UNICEF, Country Report: Algeria (2014)

https://www.unicef.org/mena/media/6526/file/Algeria%20Country%20Report%20on%20OOSC%20Summary_EN.pdf%20.pdf

[14] https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20180417-algeria-400000-children-drop-out-of-school-annually/

[15] https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-62368931

[16] https://www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/algeria-changing-french-language-english-wont-resolve-t

[17] https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-62368931

[18] https://www.statista.com/topics/9699/education-in-algeria/#topicOverview

[19] UNESCO, MICS 2019

https://www.education-inequalities.org/indicators/higher_1822/algeria/sexes#dimension1=%7B%22id%22%3A%22sex%22%2C%22filters%22%3A%5B%22Male%22%2C%22Female%22%5D%7D&ageGroup=%22attend_higher_1822%22&year=%222019%22

[20] Rose, M. (2015). Education in North Africa since independence. In Paper commissioned for the Hammamet Conference. London: British Council.

[21] ACAPS Briefing Note: Algeria: Sahrawi refugees in Tindouf (19 January 2022)

[22] ACAPS Briefing Note: Algeria: Sahrawi refugees in Tindouf (19 January 2022)

https://reliefweb.int/report/algeria/acaps-briefing-note-algeria-sahrawi-refugees-tindouf-19-january-2022

[23] UNHCR Algeria Fact Sheet – February 2023