Nine of Fourteen New Dutch Primary Schools Will Be Islamic
16th May 2025
Next year, nine out of at least fourteen new primary schools expected to open in the Netherlands will be Islamic. These nine schools have already received approval from the Ministry of Education and will receive public funding starting in August 2026.
This follows an ongoing trend in the Netherlands. Islamic education is on the rise, with more and more religious schools opening each year. The opening of nine Islamic primary schools in 2026 marks a record—the highest number in a single year. Over the past three years, about one in three newly approved primary schools has been Islamic.
Concerns have grown alongside this trend, with some municipalities fearing that children with immigrant backgrounds may be drawn away from mixed schools that promote integration, and into religious Islamic institutions that may reinforce cultural separation.
.Oh, ya think?