Enab Baladi – Omar Alaa Eldin

Winter is closing in heavily on about 4.2 million pupils and students in Syria, amid expectations that 1.5 million students will return from abroad to continue their education. This creates added pressure on schools that lack basic equipment, most notably classroom desks, in addition to the destruction many facilities sustained from bombardment by the former regime’s forces in the years following the 2011 uprising.

In recent weeks, social media has been flooded with photos and pleas from parents across multiple provinces over the shortage of desks. Images show children seated on the floor in classrooms due to overcrowding, the limited intake capacity of schools, and the lack of essential supplies.

From Daraa to Idlib

Enab Baladi documented a shortage of classroom desks in schools across several Syrian provinces, from Daraa (southern Syria) to Idlib (northwest Syria).

In Daraa, our correspondent said the province faces a desk crisis for several reasons, including the return of displaced people who had been in Jordan and Turkey to their hometowns and villages, as well as the absence of any new school construction in Daraa for the past 11 years, which has steadily increased the pressure on existing facilities.

According to the correspondent, Daraa has 988 schools, 363 of which are partially destroyed and 111 completely destroyed.

The scarcity of desks has contributed to overcrowded classrooms in the province and forced the adoption of double shifts, morning and afternoon, which has sparked concern among families.

Local volunteers with the “Abshiri Horan” campaign periodically deliver new desks to schools, but those efforts fall short of actual needs, the correspondent added.

Daraa’s Director of Education, Mohammed al-Kafri, said the province suffers from a severe shortage of classroom desks.

During a visit to follow up on desk manufacturing at the Industrial Technical Institute as part of the “Abshiri Horan” campaign, al-Kafri said around 6,000 desks have been produced and distributed.

In Deir Ezzor (eastern Syria), the education sector is also struggling, according to Enab Baladi’s correspondent. Parents and students whom we met in al-Qurayya (eastern Deir Ezzor) called for providing classroom desks for children who are sitting on the floor, as well as hiring a teaching staff for the school itself.

Other schools in the province are also short on desks, including “Hassan Matar al-Hammadi” in al-Mayadin (eastern Deir Ezzor), “al-Zir” village east of the province, and “al-Muhassan al-Sharqiyah” (eastern Deir Ezzor countryside).

A batch of classroom desks delivered to the educational complex in the Maarrat al-Numan area (Idlib countryside, northwest Syria), 21 October 2025. (Idlib Governorate)

Plan to produce 60,000 desks

Syria’s Ministry of Education confirms there is a shortage of classroom desks across all schools in the country, according to Sawsan Harastani, Director of Vocational Education at the ministry, who spoke to Enab Baladi.

Harastani said the ministry’s Vocational Education Directorate has drawn up a plan to manufacture about 60,000 school desks nationwide.

This step, she added, aims to meet schools’ needs by engaging vocational education students in production under teacher supervision.

According to Harastani, the plan proceeds in two tracks. The first is to produce and deliver desks according to need. The second is to equip vocational students with the skills required to enter the labor market.

Covering part of the needs

On 13 October, the Rural Damascus (Rif Dimashq) Education Directorate announced it had met the needs of the co-ed “Bala” School in al-Nashabiyah (Rif Dimashq, outskirts of Damascus) after a photo circulated showing students without desks.

The directorate said it managed to provide desks for students who had been sitting on the floor, affirming in a statement its keenness to meet the desk and supply needs of schools across Rural Damascus and to provide a safe, properly equipped learning environment for students and teachers.

Following that, the Director of Education in Rural Damascus, Fadi Nuzhat, said the province needs 50,000 classroom desks. With support from the ministry and the “Rifna Bistahel” campaign, the directorate was able to secure about 10,000 desks by manufacturing them in industrial secondary schools and through local community workshops.

In Idlib (northwest Syria), a batch of classroom desks was delivered to the educational complex in the Maarrat al-Numan area, the first within a project that aims to distribute 10,000 desks to support the education process and improve learning environments across the province, according to a statement published by the Idlib Governorate on 21 October.

Idlib’s Deputy Director of Education, Jamila al-Zeer, announced the province still needs more than 20,000 additional desks to cover existing shortages, particularly in the southern countryside of Idlib.

In Hama (west-central Syria), the Education Directorate is seeking to secure no fewer than 25,000 desks to meet the needs of schools in different areas, according to a statement it issued on 12 October.

The directorate said this comes under a comprehensive plan to improve the educational environment and provide appropriate conditions for pupils and students.

In Aleppo (northern Syria), schools in the city’s eastern neighborhoods have seen a lack of classroom desks, especially in districts that suffered extensive destruction during the war, which has affected public infrastructure and services.

Earlier, Aleppo’s Education Directorate told Enab Baladi it is working to assemble and repair desks, with a plan to manufacture new ones for distribution to schools across the board.

The directorate stressed that production and delivery are being carried out continuously to ensure desks reach schools suffering shortages, contributing to a better learning environment for students.

Education sector challenges

Despite forward plans, Syria’s Ministry of Education faces several challenges:

• Infrastructure: According to official ministry statistics, the education sector comprises about 19,400 schools, of which 7,900 are totally or partially destroyed, roughly 40% of the total. This deprives hundreds of thousands of children of their right to education.

• Dropouts and returning students: Around 4.2 million children are currently in school inside Syria, compared with 2.4 million out of school. A further 1.5 million students are expected to return from abroad, posing additional challenges to provide desks and suitable integration plans.

• Funding: Reforming the education sector requires large sums the government does not have, while UN fundraising efforts are faltering. Only 25.1 million US dollars have been secured out of 133.9 million dollars this year, leaving a funding gap of 108.7 million dollars.

On 17 August, Finance Minister Mohammed Yosr Bernieh, at the launch of the “Give Me Back My School” campaign, said the sectors with the largest shares of public spending include health, education, and social affairs.

He added that partnerships are essential for rehabilitating schools, noting a tax exemption of up to 20% for supporting this sector.

The minister said the government has received pledges from the Saudi Development Fund to support the rehabilitation of destroyed schools, with the option of resorting to loans if additional financing is needed to repair schools and rebuild the education process.