The volunteer teachers of IDP schools in the province of Kirkuk slam at Kirkuk education for not takin their applications for being hired on temporary contracts seriously into consideration.
The volunteer IDP lecturers were teaching children in temporary schools in the camps all over Kirkuk from June 2014 following the takeover of the Islamic State ISIS large swathes of Iraq up to 2019 when the Iraqi government has ordered to shut the camps in order to urge the IDPs to return to their home towns.
Kirkuk has received about 120,000 IDPs, according to Iraqi ministry of migration and the displaced.
“Due to the flood of displacement, the ministry of education has decided to allocate schools for IDP pupils escaped ISIS so when there was shortage of staff, they asked IDP people to lecture in these schools or free,” said Abdul-Aziz al-Yasiri, an IDP lecturer in Kirkuk.
“I have been teaching for five years for free in different IDP camps and in town as well.”
The Iraqi government has decided on April 6th to offer contracts of temporary employment for volunteer lecturers in return of Iraqi Dinars250,000 ($170) per month in reward for their voluntary efforts.
The 250 IDP lecturers of Kirkuk have signed contract with Kirkuk education directorate on August 3 and paid the $12 fees “but we were shocked when we found out our names were deleted and our right for contract employment is gone,” said al-Yasiri.
Tens of the lecturers have protested negligence by Kirkuk education in a gathering on September 26th.
“Kirkuk education has skipped our rights and told us to go back to our home province and has nothing to do for us,” said Mohammed Abdullah who accused Kirkuk education of deliberate delay of their applications.
“We have led several protests but in vain.”
In mid-May, the directorate general of education in Kirkuk has decided to receive dossiers of 10,000 lecturers teaching on temporary bases in Kirkuk schools in order to be employed per contracts by the government.
Kirkuk, Sept. 26th 2021- Tens of IDP lecturers in Kirkuk protest dealy in their employment
The syndicate of teachers in Kirkuk said it is conveying the message of the lecturers to the directorate of education.
Ihsan al-Jibouri, head of Kirkuk office for syndicate of teachers, said there are only 228 contracts available for the department of illiteracy, Kurdish education and IDP lecturers.
“Some of the IDP applicants have not served as lecturers on the ground in the IDP schools,” al-Jibouri added. “Kirkuk director of education will interview the applicants to prove their service."
Iraq’s education infrastructure is in ruins in many parts of the country; one in every two schools is damaged and needs rehabilitation, a report by UNICEF about education in Iraq says.
A number of schools operate in multiple shifts in an attempt to accommodate as many students as possible, squeezing the little learning time that children have.
Media department of Kirkuk education directorate said the issue has to do with ministry of finance.
“We have raised the issue to ministry of education which transferred it to ministry of finance and await budget allocation for IDP lecturer,” said a source in Kirkuk education media.
The syndicate of teachers said it has done its duty and the ministry has the final say.
