Photo : Collected
Qawmi madrasa educational activities in the country are run under six bigger and several small education boards with the largest one of them is Befaqul Madarisil Arabia Bangladesh ( BEFAQ). It has been identified through an analysis that the number of students who participate in the central examination under this board has increased around 55 percent in the last three years. Two lac 25 thousand 631 students participated in the BEFAQ examination in 2022 whereas 3 lac 49 thousand 776 students took part in the same examination this year. That clearly shows that the number of examinees has increased 1 lac 24 thousand 415 in three years with the significant rise of girl students. One of the officials of BEAFQ says on condition of anonymity that the country now sees 29 thousand madrasas with 50 lac students are run under this board and out of them and the students from 17 thousand 362 madrasa took part in this year’s central examination.
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However, just the opposite picture appears in the general education stream where the number of students is steadily decreasing. After crossing the stair of class eight 22 lak 44 thousand 733 students registered for board examination in 2022 but 17 lac 10 thousand 296 students sat for the SSC and equivalent examination last year. According to these statistics, we see 5 lac 34 thousand 437 students dropped out in two years that accounts for 23.80 percent of the total students. The same trend is discerned in the primary level as well. The Primary Education Statistics -2023 shows that more than 10 lac students decreased that year only in government primary schools in comparison with those of 2022 even though students increased in Ebtedai Madrasa and Kindergartens,
Educationists say that the rate of dropped out students has increased day by day in secondary schools and many of them are going to Qawmi madrasas. Along with the thought of religious aspect of Qawmi madrasa education, poverty situation after Corona stands as a prime factor of students’ going to Qawmi stream of education. So, they think it is necessary to bring this stream of education under government regulations so that students studying in this level can be developed into effective and efficient manpower as this stream appears as the quickly grown education system.
কওমি মাদরাসা: একটি অসমাপ্ত প্রকাশনা গ্রন্থটি এখন বাজারে
Poverty is the principal cause of increasing madrasa students in the marginal levels of the country as is said by Dr. Abdus Salam, Professor of DU, IER. Most of these madrasa offer free of cost of education or with very low amount of tuition fee along with residential facilities. A large number of people of our country are poor who cannot afford to bear the educational expenses of their children in schools. Moreover, working women find it difficult to look after their children who easily choose this type of educational institutions. Moreover, frequent curriculum change, long closure of schools due to Corona and some similar causes contribute to increasing the number of students in this stream of education.
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Still Qawmi madrasa and kindergartens go beyond government monitoring that has created scope for splitting education into several streams. Educationists, therefore, think that both types of educational systems should come under government monitoring. Time and again, complaints come regarding the environment of Qawmi madrasa education that calls for a transparent and professional survey covering the number of Qawmi madrasas, their teaching environment and other education related information. And steps should be taken to ensure proper educational environment so that the students can be turned into real manpower.
Qawmi is basically based on the Deoband Madrasa education system of Uttar Pradesh , India which puts more emphasis on basic education of Quran and Hadith and its highest degree is ‘ Dawrai Hadith’. Of course, most of the students complete their student life before reaching this stage of education. Government declared ‘ Daorai Hadth’ equivalent to masters when six boards named Befaqul Madarsil Arabia, Befaqul Madariil Qawmia Gaohardanga, Azad Dini Edarai Talim, Tanjimul Madarisith Dinia, Anjumane Ittehadul Madaric and Befaqul Madarisina Bangladesh – were combined into one board which is called ‘ Al Haiti Ulaila Lil Jami Atil Qawmi Madrasa Bangladesh’. Daorai Hadith exam is conducted only under this board and 24 thousand 929 students appeared in the exam in 2022 and this year (2025) 32 thousand 718 students took part in the exam showing the increase of 31.24 percent students.
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Hefajat-e-Islam, Bangaldesh played the key role to achieve the recognition of Qawmi certificate. The principal objective to receive government recognition was to make the state accept and recognize the students coming through this stream of education as educated as is said by Maoulana Mamunul Haque, the Joint Secretary General of this organization. This recognition has given the students rights to obey and participate in various duties and activities of the state as citizens. However, there must have several other objectives to utilize this recognition and one of them is to create opportunity for the students having this certificate to contribute to various stages of the state and that objective, however, has not yet been achieved. Another objective is to create opportunity for clearing the ways of higher education that is still not working.
BANBEIS conducted a survey last in 2015 that shows the number of Qawmi madrasa stands at 13 thousand 902 with 13 lac98 thosuand 252 students. However, educationists say this survey could not cover many madrasas of the remotest parts of the country. Moreover, every year this number is increasing that has not been reflected either through this survey.
The officials related to Qawmi madrasa boards have said that the number of students has increased under other boars along with Befaqul Madarisil Arabia Bangladesh. This is such a board in Sylhet named Azad Dini Edarei Talim Bangladesh. Moulana Basir, the Secretary General of this Board, says that every year the number of students and so as madrasas is increasing. Currently this board sees more than 1 lack 85 thousand students with 11 thousand 491 teachers and 785 other staff. The number of institutions stands at one thousand 129 and out of them ‘title madrasas’ are 114, Ebtedai 408 and Hifj 283.
Moulana Abdul Basir says, ‘people’s attraction for religious education has increased several folds because of their anger towards general education and so they depend on religious education more. There was a time when Qawmi madrasas were considered to be the institutions of poor students. However, the children from well-do-to families are also coming here to receive education now as their parents enroll them here. This stream could have gone much ahead in case of embracing government favour and support.