KUWAIT CITY, Feb 1: As the second semester kicks off, 534,813 male and female students are returning to public and private Arab schools. However, the Ministry of Education is grappling with a shortage of staff across regions. To address this, the ministry is considering extending the service of non-Kuwaiti supervisors whose contracts are set to expire during the current academic year.

Dalal Al-Hajraf, Acting General Supervisor of Mathematics, highlighted the critical shortage of Kuwaiti mathematics teachers, with only 11 currently overseeing approximately 76 boys' secondary schools and private education institutions. In a letter to Mansour Al-Dhafiri, Acting Assistant Undersecretary for General Education, Al-Hajraf warned of looming shortfalls as several expatriate staff approach retirement. Proposal extending the contracts of non-Kuwaiti technical staff or finding alternative solutions to prevent a crisis in the coming academic year.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Education has finalized contracts with local and Arab printing presses to produce second-semester books in a lighter, fragmented format to reduce the weight of school bags. Some publishers have committed to printing hard copies of student books and notebooks while providing electronic access to content, including audio and visual materials. They also pledged to offer in-person training for teachers at the start of each academic year and ongoing remote support throughout the license period.

The Ministry of Education continues to address challenges in the education sector while ensuring students and staff are supported for a successful academic year.