Former Deputy Minister Warns Bill Could Undermine Inclusive Education in Maldives

Former Deputy Minister of Education Mohamed Ihsan has raised concerns that a bill currently submitted to the People's Majlis could reverse progress on inclusive education in the Maldives. Speaking at an MDP Haruge session, Ihsan said that excluding children who require special assistance from the general education system is a backward policy. He argued that the bill isolates such children and pushes them back, contrasting with the internationally accepted practice of providing necessary support within regular classrooms. Ihsan noted that the MDP was the first to take initiatives to include children needing special assistance in the general education system, and he pledged that inclusive education principles would be re-established under any future MDP government. He further alleged that since the formation of the current government, secret efforts have been underway to alter the country's educational curriculum towards a specific agenda, claiming the bill gives legal backing to this shift. Ihsan expressed fear that the bill could ultimately pave the way for stopping girls from being sent to school in the future.