October 7, 2026
Beirut – “Lebanon Debate”
Representative Edgar Trabelsi called on the Ministry of Education to quickly reconsider the procedures related to the integration of public schools and the file of teachers, warning of their negative repercussions on the start of the school year and the rights of students. He confirmed, after the meeting of the Parliamentary Education Committee, that the committee supports the principle of rationalizing spending, reducing expenses, and preserving public money, but it objects to the implementation mechanism and timing, especially closing state-owned schools and transferring their students to rented buildings.
Trabelsi gave the example of Al-Hadath Public School, noting that the transfer of its students to Kfarshima will take place to a residential building that does not meet school requirements. On the other hand, he referred to the Minister of Education’s statement during the meeting that research into the merger file is still ongoing and no final decision has been taken regarding it, considering this position reassuring but it does not cancel out the realistic effects that have begun to appear on the ground.
He explained that informing schools of the possibility of their closure and stopping registration in them since mid-August prompted parents to register their children in other educational institutions, which led to a decline in the number of students in the schools in question, demanding that the reasons for this decline be investigated before it is considered a criterion for integration. In this context, he stressed that the basic principle should not include closing public schools in favor of rented buildings.
In the teachers’ file, Trabelsi described the timing of the procedures at the start of the academic year as “suspicious,” pointing out that the decisions to determine the actual need were supposed to be communicated to those concerned in the months of June or July to regulate the situation. He reported that some schools are forced to dismiss their students at 10:30 in the morning due to the absence of teachers, calling for a field examination of the reality instead of being satisfied with numbers and conditions of donors. He also pointed out that the objections opened the door to discussion with the ministry, motivating municipalities to take action to demand a review of those decisions.
Regarding the academic matter, Trabelsi touched on the file of free applications, pointing out the minister’s adherence to the decisions of the State Shura Council, and calling on the executive authority to find a legal solution that guarantees the right to submit free applications for all people, regardless of their age.
Regarding completion exams and supplementary grades, Trabelsi criticized the existing disparity between public and private school students, considering that the exceptional circumstances that Lebanon witnessed required flexible measures similar to those adopted by former Minister of Education Abbas Al-Halabi. He pointed to the case of a public student who is considered to have failed by obtaining a grade point average of 9.4, while the system allows private students to benefit from completion exams to move to the higher grade, calling for this disparity to be eliminated.
Traboulsi concluded by stressing that the Education Committee understands the ministry’s financial difficulties, stressing that protecting state-owned schools and not replacing them with rented buildings represents the basic rule for any future merger.
