Rabea’t residents begin repairs to damaged school to accommodate 170 children

Schools in poor condition across villages formerly located along front lines in the Tal Tamr and Zerkan countryside continue to deteriorate. Many sustained damage during previous military operations and have yet to undergo actual restoration work, despite the integration of Hasakah’s education sector into the institutions of the transitional government. In response, residents of Rabea’t village, west of Zeekan, have taken the initiative to clean their school and repair its damaged walls.

After a Long Wait, Residents Take Action

With winter approaching and the school year having begun about a month ago, residents found themselves facing the risk of their children being left without access to education, as the school remained out of service and required essential preparations.

According to residents, their appeals to the relevant authorities received no adequate response, prompting them to take matters into their own hands to salvage the school year. They stressed, however, that their efforts do not absolve the relevant authorities of their responsibilities.

Residents have begun cleaning the school and repairing collapsed sections of its walls in an effort to provide their children with a nearby and safe place to learn.

Distant Schools Threaten Attendance for 170 Children

The hardship has worsened as students are forced to attend schools outside the village. Resident Dawoud Suleiman al-Wazo said the nearest alternative school is about two kilometers away, a tiring and unsafe distance, particularly for first-grade pupils because of their young age, narrow roads and traffic.

Al-Wazo explained that around 120 students have to travel this distance every day, while approximately 50 first-grade children remain out of school because their families cannot send them to schools farther away.

Needs Beyond the Reach of a Community Initiative

Despite the importance of the residents’ initiative, reopening the school requires official intervention. The building still needs repairs to its damaged sections, as well as desks, blackboards and drinking water which are essential supplies that residents cannot provide on their own.

Appeal to the Transitional Government

Residents of Rabea’t have called on the educational complex, the Directorate of Education and the Ministry of Education in the Syrian transitional government to intervene urgently, complete the rehabilitation work and equip the school.

They stressed that their demand concerns their children’s right to receive an education in their own village. They also called for special attention to be given to damaged schools near former front lines and for a practical plan to be developed to rehabilitate them, ensure students can return to school and end the hardship facing families.

A-H

ANHA