Syria to integrate nearly 20,000 Rojava teachers into national education system
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Around 19,400 teachers previously employed in Hasaka province by the Kurdish-led administration in northeastern Syria (Rojava) are set to be transferred onto the Syrian interim government’s payroll as permanent civil servants as part of an ongoing integration process between Damascus and Rojava, an education official said on Saturday.
"Approximately 19,400 employees who were working under the umbrella of the education board have now generally entered the ministry of education system," Adnan al-Bari, head of education department in Hasaka told Rudaw’s Nalin Hassan on Saturday, adding that "no teacher will be left out.”
Syria’s education authorities announced last week that they have begun reviewing and evaluating the academic and professional credentials of teachers in the Kurdish-majority Hasaka province. The move is part of broader efforts to implement an integration process between Damascus and the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (DAANES).
Bari's remarks come as negotiations continue between Damascus and the Kurdish-led autonomous administration following a landmark agreement signed late January after weeks of intense clashes between the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) - the de facto military authority in Rojava - and the Syrian Arab Army.
Under the agreement, both sides committed to a permanent ceasefire and to integrating civil and military institutions in Rojava into the Syrian state.
“Several committees are currently working on this. They are processing the documents of these teachers for verification. Certain documents have been requested," Bari said.
The Rojava education official added that there are around 33,000 teachers in the Kurdish-led enclave, including those who were employed prior to the establishment of the DAANES.
Rojava also has around 700,000 students enrolled in about 2,000 schools, according to Bari.
Following the withdrawal of the Syrian Arab Army from Kurdish-majority areas in 2012, Kurdish forces gradually consolidated control, establishing civilian and military institutions.
With the ouster of long-time ruler Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, the Kurdish-led SDF and Damascus began integration talks aimed at merging the DAANES institutions into the Syrian state apparatus.
After a prolonged stalemate that escalated into weeks of intense clashes in early January, both sides signed an agreement to accelerate the stalled integration process.
In addition to the transfer of civilian and military personnel, the agreement also addresses the status of the Kurdish language in education.
“Now, with the start of the [new academic] year, it must be one program - the Syrian program - and the framework for the Kurdish program of the autonomous administration will be clarified in the coming days" the education official explained, noting that there are only “technical matters” with regards to resuming education in Kurdish.
“Translating the curricula into Kurdish is one of the proposals,” he added.
Authorities in Rojava have implemented a separate curriculum that includes instruction in the Kurdish language, distinct from the Syrian state system.
On Kurdish curriculum and language rights, Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa issued Presidential Decree 13 in January, recognizing Kurdish as a “national language” while maintaining Arabic as the sole official language of Syria.
"Approximately 19,400 employees who were working under the umbrella of the education board have now generally entered the ministry of education system," Adnan al-Bari, head of education department in Hasaka told Rudaw’s Nalin Hassan on Saturday, adding that "no teacher will be left out.”
Syria’s education authorities announced last week that they have begun reviewing and evaluating the academic and professional credentials of teachers in the Kurdish-majority Hasaka province. The move is part of broader efforts to implement an integration process between Damascus and the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (DAANES).
Bari's remarks come as negotiations continue between Damascus and the Kurdish-led autonomous administration following a landmark agreement signed late January after weeks of intense clashes between the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) - the de facto military authority in Rojava - and the Syrian Arab Army.
Under the agreement, both sides committed to a permanent ceasefire and to integrating civil and military institutions in Rojava into the Syrian state.
“Several committees are currently working on this. They are processing the documents of these teachers for verification. Certain documents have been requested," Bari said.
The Rojava education official added that there are around 33,000 teachers in the Kurdish-led enclave, including those who were employed prior to the establishment of the DAANES.
Rojava also has around 700,000 students enrolled in about 2,000 schools, according to Bari.
Following the withdrawal of the Syrian Arab Army from Kurdish-majority areas in 2012, Kurdish forces gradually consolidated control, establishing civilian and military institutions.
With the ouster of long-time ruler Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, the Kurdish-led SDF and Damascus began integration talks aimed at merging the DAANES institutions into the Syrian state apparatus.
After a prolonged stalemate that escalated into weeks of intense clashes in early January, both sides signed an agreement to accelerate the stalled integration process.
In addition to the transfer of civilian and military personnel, the agreement also addresses the status of the Kurdish language in education.
“Now, with the start of the [new academic] year, it must be one program - the Syrian program - and the framework for the Kurdish program of the autonomous administration will be clarified in the coming days" the education official explained, noting that there are only “technical matters” with regards to resuming education in Kurdish.
“Translating the curricula into Kurdish is one of the proposals,” he added.
Authorities in Rojava have implemented a separate curriculum that includes instruction in the Kurdish language, distinct from the Syrian state system.
On Kurdish curriculum and language rights, Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa issued Presidential Decree 13 in January, recognizing Kurdish as a “national language” while maintaining Arabic as the sole official language of Syria.