Ukraine students protest conditioned inclusion into Moroccan universities

Parents of Moroccan students who fled Ukraine continue to protest against the solutions proposed by the Minister of Higher Education, demanding inclusion into Moroccan universities and easing entrance procedures.

The National Association of Mothers and Fathers of Moroccan Students in Ukraine organized a sit-in in Rabat this Saturday, in front of the Ministry of Higher Education, to protest the Minister’s “refusal” to meet with them, and to express their rejection of conditioned inclusion into Moroccan universities.

The ministry had previously announced that if the returning students wish to integrate Moroccan universities, they will have to successfully take an entrance exam, as is the case with most hopeful first year students.

Parents of the students, who gathered in Rabat from different cities, called on the Minister to withdraw the conditions, while demanding a meeting to “reach solutions that will satisfy all parties.”

They chanted slogans stressing their adherence to dialogue, while expressing their refusal to “absent the participatory approach in solving their children’s case.”

The fate of the Moroccan students forcibly returned from Ukraine due to the war remains ambiguous, despite many possible solutions presented by the Ministry.

The Ministry of Higher Education has yet to take any practical initiative, so far, the concerned students’ parents reject the ministry’s proposals, while returning to Ukraine seems almost impossible, in light of the ongoing armed conflict.

The parents also refused the Ministry’s proposal to transfer their children to other Ukraine-neighboring countries to complete their studies, clinging to their direct integration in universities and higher institutes in Morocco.

Abdelkader El Youssoufi, President of the National Association for Mothers and Fathers of Moroccan Students in Ukraine, explained that this solution is impossible, as it will cost the parents double what they pay for their children’s studies in Ukraine.

The association wrote to parliamentary groups, asking them to intervene to solve the students’ problem, in addition to them addressing letters to the Minister asking for dialogue.