Ahmed, a Kurdish boy who came to Romania from Iraq, is 17 years old and he is enlisted in the second grade, in the "Second Chance" program. How did this happen?
"Due to the negligence of the responsible persons and because he did not have documents from his country of origin to certify his studies, this boy would probably finish primary school in 10 years (he goes to classes only 2 hours a week, according to the schedule), so it is only at the age of 27 that he could enter high school ", explains Rodica Novac, Project Manager of the Terre des hommes Foundation in Romania. However, Ahmed speaks Romanian very well, unlike other children who come here, who do not have enough support in learning the language.
His story is somehow emblematic of the problems faced by foreign children who migrate to Romania for various reasons.
Ahmed fled Iraq where his family was in danger. It took him 2 years to get to Romania, but here he encountered other problems. He especially had difficulties in continuing school. When he left his country in 2016, he was in the seventh grade. In Romania he was in the fifth grade, then he was moved to another school and enrolled in an even lower class, and now he enrolled in the Second Chance program, addressed to adults who dropped out of school (which is obviously not the case). All this because of the bureaucracy and despite the fact that he learned Romanian quickly and perfectly and only wants to learn and be safe. Like him, there are thousands of other foreign children / migrants in Romania.
At the end of 2019, there were 15,794 young people under 19 coming from other countries, with the right to stay in Romania, according to the General Inspectorate for Immigration. The reasons why most of these minors are in Romania vary (from war or life-threatening situations at home, to family reunification, mixed families, etc.). What is certain is that they are rarely the ones who chose to be here and that they are often already part of a sad story from which education alone can save them. The National Education Law in Romania stipulates that they also have every right to education without any discrimination, but the reality is far from theory.
Watch the interview with Ahmed here
Terre des hommes Foundation draws particular attention to the situation of children and young migrants * from non-European countries, asylum seekers or beneficiaries of some form of international protection. If we assume that students who come for studies do not have major integration problems, there are still about 12,000 migrant children ** who are faced with obstacles such as lack of education, they do not know Romanian language or miss years of study. They also have difficulties adapting to the new social, cultural and educational context and are discriminated against during their stay in Romania. This country is a destination for over 10,000 children and young people who need affirmative measures, financed from the state budget, to guarantee them the exercise of the right to education.
*Note 1 Migrant has been used as an “umbrella term” to include asylum seekers, beneficiaries of international protection, foreigners (third-country nationals), stateless persons. Migrant refers to the person who moves away from his or her usual place of residence, temporarily or permanently, and for a variety of reasons.
** Note 2: The figures were provided for the Terre des hommes Foundation by the Inspectorate General for Immigration in Romania, as the Ministry of Education and Research in Romania does not collect or publish any statistical data on the access of foreign minors, asylum seekers and beneficiaries of protection in the public education system and no data on their school participation.
This article is part of an advocacy initiative of the Terre des hommes Romania Foundation, within its MINT project, Mentoring for Integration of third country national children affected by migration ”(MINT) (Jan. 2019-Feb. 2021) of Terre des hommes Romania, co-financed by the European Union, through the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund.