kabarsula Syria’s new university decrees aim to expand access to higher education, minister says bandar SLOT INDONESIA

Damascus, Nov. 8 (SANA) Syria’s Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Marwan al-Halabi said new decrees establishing and formally recognizing university faculties would expand access to higher education, particularly for students outside major urban centers.

In a statement posted on Facebook, al-Halabi said the decrees issued by President Ahmad al-Sharaa were intended to strengthen university infrastructure, widen the geographical reach of higher education and better align academic programs with students’ needs and the labor market.

The measures include the formal recognition of faculties and institutes at Idlib University, as well as the establishment of new faculties at universities in Aleppo, Hama, Deir Ezzor, Tartous and Latakia.

Al-Halabi said the recognition of Idlib University’s institutions carried particular significance because they had continued providing education during years of Syrian Revolution.

He described the institutions as places where students and educators preserved academic learning despite difficult conditions, adding that their formal recognition would establish their legal status within Syria’s higher education system.

Expanding university access across Syria

The minister said the new faculties at the universities of Aleppo, Hama, Al-Furat, Tartous and Latakia were part of efforts to make higher education more accessible across the country.

The expansion is intended to give students more opportunities to study closer to home while offering programs that respond to economic and development needs, particularly in engineering, medicine, science, law, economics and the humanities.

Al-Halabi added that establishing new faculties was only the first step, saying universities would need qualified staff, adequate resources and effective administrative structures to maintain academic standards.

He stressed that the goal was not simply to increase the number of faculties but to develop institutions capable of training skilled graduates, supporting research and serving local communities.

The minister also linked investment in higher education to Syria’s broader reconstruction efforts, saying universities should help equip young people with the knowledge and skills needed for the country’s recovery and development.

R.H/Abd