Lebanon faces significant challenges as the new school year approaches, with approximately 21,000 people still living in collective shelters, many of them housed within public schools. The displacement crisis stems from the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah that intensified earlier this year. While a ceasefire has been in place since late June, allowing most displaced residents to return home, around 350,000 people remain displaced overall, according to United Nations figures. Those still sheltered include families from southern villages that have been destroyed or are under Israeli military occupation.
Education officials have outlined plans to reopen schools on September 15 while maintaining shelter facilities for displaced families with no alternative housing. The strategy involves reopening approximately 80 schools that currently serve as shelters, with some institutions splitting operations between classrooms and shelter areas, while others will consolidate displaced residents into single locations. In Beirut, the education ministry plans to move families to unused buildings to free up school space. However, significant infrastructure challenges remain, with 340 schools damaged during the conflict, including 30 that have been destroyed entirely, leaving limited repair resources available.
The conflict has created substantial educational setbacks across Lebanon. At the height of the recent war, over half of the country’s public schools served as shelters, disrupting education for more than 250,000 students. Humanitarian organizations estimate a cumulative learning loss of at least four years, with some students falling several grade levels behind academically. Lebanon has traditionally maintained a strong education system that has supported its economy through exporting educated workers who send remittances and investments back home.
The situation reflects years of compounding crises for the nation. Since 2019, Lebanon has endured economic collapse, pandemic disruptions, the 2020 Beirut port explosion, and two major conflicts. Families living in school shelters express anxiety about both their ability to return home and their children’s educational prospects. Experts argue that using schools as shelters creates long-term education crises, suggesting alternative shelter locations should have been prioritized to protect the country’s schooling infrastructure and educational continuity.
Article Attribution | Read More at Article Source
Article summary produced by Claude AI