JEDDAH: The director of international and private education in Riyadh has said that a private school has the right to withhold the certificates of students and other documents until all financial liabilities are paid and met.

In a ministerial circular, Mahmoud Al-Quiahes said that though schools have the right to withhold the certificates and documents of students until financial settlement is made and all dues are met and fulfilled, “that should not prevent the student from continuing his studies at another school.”

On whether financial fines are imposed on schools in the event of them withholding the files of students who want to transfer to another school, he said: “We have regulations in place and a ministerial circular which addresses the educational problems students have in transferring files electronically. The paper files stay at the school until all financial liabilities incurred have been paid. The most important thing is that the student in question does not have to stay out of school. The system clearly bans expelling a student for nonpayment of fees.”

He said school fees varied from one school to another, according to the curricula and the school buildings, the location of the school and other educational services offered. “The Ministry of Education monitors fees and follows up on them in accordance with the decision of the Council of Ministers,” he said.

Al-Quiahes stressed the big role entrusted to private education in view of the big expansion seen recently in the sector.

He said the private and international education office under the newly implemented restructuring would open prospects for investment and expansion and would ease all hardships and obstacles faced by investors and owners.

“We aim to take a quantum leap in the quality of education in private and international schools, and to support the educational process inside those private establishments,” he said.

He said the Riyadh Education Department is one of the biggest and supervises private and international schools.

“The number of private and international schools for all study levels for both boys and girls is 1,700, and the number of students around 300,000 male and female,” he said.

He confirmed that the government offers assistance and aids to a number of international schools, including technical assistance, financial aid and other types of support.

“The Ministry of Education appoints a school principal for each private school at the expense of the ministry. In addition, each school is provided with free books according to the number of its students, as well as an amount of money also according to the number of students and its annual assessment,” he said.