RIYADH — The Education Ministry’s delay in naming the company that won the contract to print textbooks has been blamed for the late distribution of books to the students.



According to an informed source, printers were notified as late as July 24, only a month before the schools reopened, when it should have been done six months earlier. Printing around 10 million copies of 80 textbooks would usually take around four months, while distribution to schools takes at least two months. Despite the delayed tender, the source said printers managed to print all textbooks in three weeks and deliver them to the ministry’s warehouses before the start of the academic year.

The ministry is expected to complete distribution of the textbooks to schools by the end of next week. Speaking to Saudi Gazette, the director of a private secondary school, Nawal Albeshri, said the ministry delayed the books delivery by three months as they used to receive the books before the summer vacation every year. “I do not know the reasons behind the delay.



However, we have instructed the teachers to create worksheets for daily lessons until the books arrive,” she said. — Shahd Alhamdan