The Ministry of Education, in collaboration with UNICEF and with the support of the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), hosted the "Annual Joint Education Sector Review" (JSR) Culmination Summit today to reflect the progress of the education sector over the past year.
 
The JSR process was carried out over the past days, organized into three key phases. This included evaluating schools to identify areas needed to strengthen the management of government schools, reviewing all departments, divisions, and sections of the Ministry of Education, gathering feedback from schools, and bringing in a consultant to analyze the information gathered from the reviews.
 
 As the final phase of the JSR, today's Culmination Summit is focused on presenting the reviews, discussing the challenges and progress in the education sector over the past year, and finalizing the 2024 education sector review.
 
 Speaking at the opening ceremony of the summit, Minister Dr. Ismail Shafeeq stated that increasing the number of students pursuing higher secondary education is the key solution to the current challenges facing the education sector and youth in the Maldives. He pointed out that, as a result of a pilot program launched in 23 schools across Male' and the atolls over the past year, the number of students beginning higher secondary education in government schools increased by 77 percent compared to 2023.

 Additionally, the Minister stated that new infrastructure work to increase capacity for higher secondary education will begin this year in Male', in line with the President's directive.
 
 This summit serves as a crucial platform to discuss the challenges within the Maldivian education sector and the ongoing efforts to address these issues. Over 80 education professionals and senior officials from various government ministries are attending the event.