After 14 Years of Conflict, Can Barriers to Education in Syria Be Overcome?

Executive Summary

Syria is now in a critical transition period that could shape its future. With Bashar al-Assad’s 24-year rule ending in December 2024, Syria faces a significant political shift that presents a valuable opportunity to revitalize its universal education system.

This report aims to identify barriers to education in the country after 14 years of conflict. Based on a combination of primary and secondary sources, including consultations with practitioners and experts working in Syria, this report suggests a framework for streamlining greater support for the schooling of children and young people in the country. It outlines a series of challenges that include protracted political fragmentation, safety and security concerns, forced displacement, infrastructure destruction, restrictive donor agreements, insufficient investment, socioeconomic challenges, a mounting energy crisis, and regulatory complexity. It goes on to discuss these in relation to the availability of safe learning spaces, lack of qualified and experienced teachers, and barriers to access teaching and learning equipment, tools, and technology.

For over a decade, Syria was divided into three main areas of political control, each utilizing different curricula and demonstrating varying abilities to provide and safeguard educational services. This situation has also made it difficult for students to have their education formally recognized and certified. The safety and psychological well-being of students is a significant concern, also due to the continuation of instability in the country and extensive contamination of unexploded ordnances (UXOs). Large-scale forced displacement and destruction of infrastructure, including schools, have compounded challenges to education, including for those with disabilities. International political restrictions on reconstruction and development activities, made conditional on viable steps toward a negotiated conflict settlement, have hindered attempts to invest in universal education in Syria. Furthermore, despite the display of solidarity by the international community with the Syrian population, insufficient donor investments have gone into the sector, amounting to only 5% of the total funding committed. Inflation and the depreciation of the Syrian pound have forced many families to deprioritize education over other essential needs. The severe energy crisis impacts schooling, whether students are homeschooled or in classrooms, making learning spaces unconducive to education. A complex set of regulations, including sanctions and export controls, have knock-on effects on education, resulting in over-compliance and financial sector de-risking. Export controls are found to have an especially negative impact on the availability of teaching equipment and technologies.

While endeavoring to address multifaceted contextual challenges, the ongoing political transition in Syria is grappling with the challenges deriving from fragmented education curricula and diverse value systems within the country (e.g., cultural, religious, and political). This report offers a series of recommendations for donors, education responders, and sanctioning and export control authorities, aimed at complementing efforts owned and led by Syria to revitalize its education system. These include broadened financial and logistical support, clearer guidance on permissible activities in relation to education in Syria, and removal of barriers to essential teaching and learning tools and equipment. Furthermore, the report recommends harmonizing donor approaches to education programming across all parts of Syria, with an emphasis on long-term investments in equipping teachers and restoring conducive learning environments, including school rehabilitation. It concludes by underscoring the urgent need for decisive action from the international community to address the educational barriers facing children and young people in Syria, in line with global commitments to advancing education in the country.