Education in occupied territories turning into conveyor belt of cheap labor - NRC

The aggressor country of russia is narrowing educational opportunities for young people in the temporarily occupied territories (TOT), turning education into a tool of control, not development. The most popular specialties - law, economics, journalism, international relations, technical areas - have come under attack. Formally, this is done to "balance the labor market", but in fact - it is a sharp restriction of access to prestigious professions. This is stated in the message of the National Resistance Center (NRC).

As noted, for teenagers from TOT this means almost zero chances of entering to educational institution: there are few quotas, competition is artificially inflated, and local "branches" of russian universities offer only what is beneficial to the occupiers.

In parallel, according to the NRC, Moscow is handing out tens of thousands of budget places to foreigners - for the sake of the image of "soft power", which has not worked for a long time. It is emphasized that the russian federation itself recognizes the catastrophic shortage of personnel in schools: a shortage of physicists, chemists, technical teachers and mass aging of teachers. The education system is crumbling, the quality of training is falling, so russia compensates for the failures with bans and restrictions.

"Against this background, the Kremlin is pushing a new model: instead of universities - vocational schools, instead of choice - "professions needed by the state." Young people are not being prepared for a career, but for hard work or military service. In the agricultural sector, they declare a need for hundreds of thousands of workers and are already creating "agrotechnical classes" - in fact, a conveyor belt of cheap labor. The same is being imposed on TOT.

Added to this is gender pressure: incentives for early pregnancies, restrictions on access to abortions, propaganda of the roles of "giving birth" or "serving". For girls - a demographic reserve. For boys - a mobilization orbit," the Center adds.

As a result, a clear system is formed:

• educational segregation - minimum chances for a prestigious education;
• social pressure - imposition of the roles of "worker" and "mother";
• mobilization vector - sending young men to the service;
• degradation of infrastructure - lack of quality schools and teachers.

The Center emphasizes that russia does not develop youth on TOT - it forms a resource.

"This is not about the future, but about control. Not about opportunities, but about subjugation. For Ukrainian teenagers, the occupation system determines the role in advance: labor force, demographic reserve or soldier," the Center summarizes.

As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, the aggressor country of russia is launching the next stage of a large-scale program to assimilate Ukrainian children. Under the guise of "university changes," a group of schoolchildren from Shakhtarsk, Donetsk Region, were brought to Sakhalin Oblast - selected from lists of "excellent students," activists of pro-Kremlin circles, and children of participants in the so-called "SVO" [special military operation, as they call war in Ukraine in russia - ed.] They are given entertaining excursions, shown universities, told about "careers on the islands," and directly agitated to build their future in the Far East.

To request a correction, please send an email.