Hundred and five private and international schools, which have been previously operating in rented buildings, have been shifted to new buildings after the Education Ministry refused to renew their licenses for operating in buildings that were not designed for education. The ministry issued the new rules about eight months ago and gave private schools a deadline of two academic years to shift to education-friendly buildings. The move comes as part of the ministry's efforts to improve the quality of education and encourage private investment in the sector. A total of 758 investors in the private and international school sector, meanwhile, met in Riyadh recently and discussed plans to shift to new buildings. A total of 133 more private and international schools will be shifted shortly to new buildings under construction. "We are now following other schools that did not provide their plans to shift to new educational-friendly buildings," the ministry said. The ministry said it was removing obstacles facing investors to shift to new facilities in coordination with other government departments including the ministry of municipal and rural affairs. "We have softened rules and regulations to encourage investors to build private and international schools in white lands in terms of space, parking and distance between educational institutions," the ministry statement said. The ministry has launched another project to rent land plots through Tatwir Education Company and endorsed an initiative to encourage the private sector to invest in schools. "We are also in the process of opening service offices for the benefit of investors," the ministry said. These offices managed by Tatwir will facilitate and expand investment in education, the ministry added. Dr. Saad Al-Fehaid, deputy minister for private and international education, highlighted the ministry's efforts to improve the quality of education in the Kingdom by creating a suitable learning atmosphere for students. "This will certainly have a big impact on their performance and boosting the Kingdom's educational standard in tune with development of its various sectors," Al-Fehaid told Al-Hayat Arabic daily. The new move will also help realize the objectives of the private and international education sector that aims to modernize the country's education system. However, he advised private investors that they have to follow the rules and regulations as well as conditions and standards set by the government to ensure continuity of investment in private and international school projects. "The ministry will revise the rules and conditions as per requirements," the deputy minister said. "We consider private investors as part and parcel of the education system in order to realize our common objectives," he added. In a related development, Abdullah Al-Manie, director general of education in the Riyadh region, signed a memorandum of understanding with Savola Group for partnership to conduct educational and training programs to people of special needs. People of special needs will be given necessary training to strengthen their capabilities and skills in order to enable them to receive suitable jobs, Al-Manie said.
