Schooling Venezuelan children

THE BROAD smiles on the faces of government ministers gathered at a publicity event held at the Ministry of Education on August 19 contrasted sharply with the reality faced by thousands of Venezuelan children still left unable to access basic schooling.

That reality: more than five years after the migrant crisis came to a head, the State has still not found an effective way of giving full life to its obligations under treaties like the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which calls on nations to “make primary education compulsory and available freely to all.”

Instead, after all this time, and after repeated assurances from multiple officials, only 23 students will be able to attend classes when the new term starts.

In contrast, there are 2,000 migrant children who should be in school.

At one stage in 2021, the registered number was put as high as 4,400. Clearly, the many practical barriers to their admission remain.

Even by the ministry’s own standards, informed by the fact that it received 187 applications, the figure is a drop in the bucket.

Worse, only four will be placed at government schools.

“It is no mean feat to get to this point,” insisted Minister of Education Dr Nyan Gadsby-Dolly at this week’s odd ceremony, in which minors were lined up and made to furnish envelopes with paperwork – as though at one of the many staged Nicolas Maduro signing ceremonies. “We want to help, but we had to do it in a lawful way.”

Minister of National Security Fitzgerald Hinds, attending the event alongside brand-new Minister in the Ministry of National Security Keith Scotland, indicated the movement of people across borders brings significant benefits but also poses challenges, such as illegal migration.

With our education system under strain, the hesitation to admit more students is understandable. The floodgates could be opened: with the political situation in Venezuela darkening, numbers are only set to rise.

But the Cabinet’s position, which places supreme emphasis on legal status, contradicts not only international norms, but practice in other countries.

In the UK, local education authorities are mandated to supply suitable full-time education for all children resident in their area.

In the US, authorities cannot deny access to education to any child who does not have documentation; officials cannot even request information about status.

In Guyana, all children, "legal" and "illegal," are allowed to enrol in schools, as well as access to school feeding programmes, uniform vouchers and education grants. There are over 3,000 migrant children enrolled there, including several from TT.

It is remarkable that even with international assistance and help from religious bodies, we have taken half a decade to admit so few. That suggests the State’s deeper disposition, smiles notwithstanding.