Iraq

Since the mid-to late 1970s, Iraq has made major strides in providing universal, free, or low-cost education to its population. In recent times, the Iraqi people have been among the best educated in the Middle East, with ample opportunities for remedial education, study abroad, and graduate study. The Ministry of Education and other government organizations, as well as private institutions and organizations, have developed a comprehensive system for the planning, implementation, and review of the Iraqi educational infrastructure. Special, ongoing attention has been devoted to the eradication of illiteracy and the education of women. People's schools continue to grant primary school certificates to adults, while women have been the greatest beneficiaries of rural literacy training and outreach programs. The modernization of the nation had, until, the early 1990s, largely depended—and succeeded—on the strengthening and energizing of the educational system.

Since the outbreak of the Gulf War, Iraq's placement under international sanctions has drastically limited its ability to continue its ambitious educational and social programs. At the level of higher education, professors and academics complain of an "international boycott" that prevents them from accessing the latest materials and research sources. Government funds are unavailable for the construction of schools, hiring of faculty, purchase of textbooks and materials, and the continuation of the school nutrition program. Iraq has seen exponential rises in student absences and dropout rates, as well as teachers quitting to find other work. While the health and social infrastructures continue to deteriorate, costing thousands of lives on a monthly basis, education is often seen as the last target for humanitarian efforts. The future of Iraqi education and the nation itself appears to hinge largely on the elimination of the sanctions and the reconstruction of the country's infrastructure. Until then, any study of the country must reflect Iraq's potential as an educational superpower and the limits under which it must survive as a result of the international sanctions.