Karami Presented Preparations for Launching the Academic Year in the South

Minister of Higher Education Dr. Riya Karami chaired an administrative meeting attended by the General Director of Education Fadi Yirki and several heads of units responsible for administration and preparation for the launch of the new academic year, informing them of her meeting with Prime Minister Najib Mikati during the ministerial session held at the Saraya, where she outlined the ministry's plan for launching the academic year in Lebanon, particularly in the south, and various responses to the diverse challenges in the region, especially in the University District of Nabatieh, including alternative arrangements for schools damaged or partially destroyed and how to address and rehabilitate them.

She also briefed the president and attendees on the integration plan for incomplete classes into schools or consolidating students into unified buildings according to individual circumstances, all within clear standards aimed at ensuring better education, reducing waste, and improving performance.

She noted that "detailed plans for each file will be announced in due course," and informed Prime Minister Mikati about her upcoming visit to the southern region next Wednesday, taking his instructions.

On another front, Minister Karami chaired a broad meeting focused on developing official examinations, reviewing the current situation, diagnosing strengths and weaknesses, and drawing on global best practices and experiences in enhancing official exams through digitization and governance.

Scenarios suitable for the Lebanese context were also presented, along with selected international pathways to empower the working team and benefit from established approaches to achieve the required effectiveness.

A comprehensive overview was provided of all aspects of existing examinations, including administrative, logistical, pedagogical, and legal preparations, as well as efforts to enhance digitization and governance, carried out in partnership between the ministry, the Educational Research and Development Center, and the Guidance and Counseling Directorate, and ways to strengthen the team’s capacity in managing information while ensuring confidentiality and transparency, especially since the Lebanese examination system has demonstrated resilience even under extremely difficult conditions.

Karami thanked "experts and supporters from the French Development Agency and UNICEF for the plan that analyzed the reality and strengthened it with ideas, suggestions, and strategies based on situational diagnosis and leveraging global expertise and application outcomes," and commended "global trends and the use of international examination and assessment systems, integrating these approaches into the competency-based assessment project developed by the Educational Research and Development Center as part of curriculum reform efforts."