13 kindergartens flouting rules referred to Public Prosecution

Manama : The Education Ministry has referred 13 kindergartens to the judicial authorities and sent warnings to others over a series of violations detected in these institutions this year.

This was confirmed in a statement issued by Private and Continuous Education Assistant Undersecretary Jaffar Al Shaikh, who said that the kindergartens were referred to the Public Prosecution for operating without the necessary official permission.

Al Shaikh explained that the institutions violating norms were detected during 184 unannounced field visits conducted in 2017 to different kindergartens and nursery schools in the Kingdom.

He said the 13 kindergartens that were referred to the Public Prosecution were operating without a permission as per unofficial agreements between parents and the owners of the facilities.

“The violating institutions were not officially permitted by the Kindergartens Directorate in the ministry and didn’t comply with the conditions of the license mentioned in Decree Law 25 of 1998 concerning private educational and training institutions,” Al Shaikh said while calling upon parents to consult the concerned departments in the ministry ahead of enrolling their children into kindergartens.

The official stressed, “The Ministry takes no administrative or legal responsibility if the kindergarten doesn’t have the official license.”

He also clarified that the other kindergartens were warned over violations related to the permission, safety and security conditions.

“As part of the promotion of investment in the kindergartens sector, the ministry has received 36 new applications for kindergartens, which are currently being studied by the specialists to verify that they meet the criteria and conditions required. It is worth noting that there are currently 133 kindergartens operating in the Kingdom of Bahrain,” Al Shaikh added.