Number of Afghans in Iranian schools up by 40pc

KABUL (Pajhwok): The number of Afghan students in Iranian schools has gone up to 800,000 from 500,000, an official said on Wednesday.

Mehdi Fayyazi, the deputy minister of education, estimated that about 800,000 Afghan students were currently studying in schools across Iran.

IRNA quoted him as linking the 40 percent increase to directives from Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei in 2015.

Seven years back, Khamenei had stressed the need for educating all Afghan migrant students living in the neighbouring country.

The Ministry of Education in Tehran welcomes Afghan students at a time when schools in provinces like Qom, Tehran and Razavi Khorasan are already operating at their 100 percent capacity.

Asking Afghan migrants to get special cards for education support, the official cautioned against direct admissions to schools.

Thousands of Afghan migrant families streamed into Iran after the Taliban’s takeover in August 2021, according to the news agency.

PAN Monitor/mud