Muscat: In response to the directives issued by His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik at Bait Bahjat Al Andhar in Suhar last week, the Ministry of Education disclosed details of school projects.
Majid bin Said al Bahri, Under-Secretary for Administrative and Financial Affairs at the Ministry of Education, stated that 76 schools are coming up in different governorates depending on the students’ density as follows: Muscat Governorate (19 schools), North Al Batinah Governorate (17 schools), South Al Batinah Governorate (11 schools), Al Dakhiliyah Governorate (5 schools), South Al Sharqiyah Governorate (9 schools), North Al Sharqiyah Governorate (1 school), Al Buraimi Governorate (2 schools), Al Dhahirah Governorate (1 school), Dhofar Governorate (9 schools) and Musandam Governorate (2 schools).
He noted that the new schools will lower students’ density in classrooms and reduce the number of evening schools as well as replace dilapidated school buildings.
Sulaiman bin Zahir al Ruwaishdi, Director-General of Planning and Strategic Development, said that the number of students was estimated to reach 156,000 during the Tenths Five-Year Development Plan (2021-2025). In order to absorb more numbers of students, the ministry expands the capacity of existing schools and constructs new schools.
The Ministry of Education has planned to expand 300 existing schools during the current development plan to be able to accommodate 30 per cent of new students. Also, as part of its Tenth Five-Year Development Plan, the ministry envisions construction of 251 new integrated schools across the Sultanate of Oman that can accommodate the remaining 70 per cent of the additional numbers of students.