North Macedonia education dispute over disability support assistants

The Social Democratic Union of Macedonia (SDSM) has accused the Ministry of Education and Science of failing to provide educational assistants for approximately 250 children with disabilities, many of whom are first-graders, at the start of the school year. SDSM claims that schools submitted requests as early as June 30, yet the lack of timely support has caused fear and uncertainty for students and parents.

The Ministry of Education and Science has rejected these accusations as inaccurate. The Ministry stated that a record 1,524 educational assistants have been engaged this year, consisting of 1,358 in primary education and 166 in secondary education. The Ministry further noted that procedures are underway to hire additional specialists based on parental requests.

In response to previous systemic issues, the Ministry highlighted new measures including improved physical accessibility in schools, online learning continuity for long-term sick students, and new scholarships for students with disabilities and rare diseases.