Khartoum — Sudan's Ministry of Education issued a decision on Wednesday to cancel the final exams for primary, intermediate, and secondary education in all war-affected states in the country and to transfer pupils and students directly to the higher grades.

The decision is to cancel the final exams for students of class 6 of the elementary schools in all states affected by the ongoing conflict, and to transfer all students in the sixth grade to the intermediate schools directly.

The ministry also issued a decision to cancel all final transfer exams in the three stages of primary, intermediate, and secondary education in all war-affected states in the country and to transfer pupils and students directly to the higher grades.

The ministry indicated that the decision was taken after consultation with the Minister of Federal Government and the governors of the concerned states affected by the war.

The new school system became a reality with the start of the 2022-2023 school year . Instead of eight classes of primary school and three classes of secondary school, students in Sudan now attend six classes of primary school, three classes of middle school, and three classes of secondary school, provided their parents can pay the sharply increased tuition fees, also for state schools.

Fewer children, however, have enrolled this school year. According to UNICEF, one third of Sudanese children will not attend school this year due to lack of money. State schools that should be free now also charge hefty school fees. According to UN agencies, round 14 million children in Sudan need humanitarian aid. Education has been further hampered since the outbreak of the war due to the sporadic and delayed payment of teachers' salaries.