Suriname’s education sector has reached a critical breaking point as teacher unions issue urgent warnings about unsustainable working conditions and severe compensation challenges. Three major educational organizations—the Federation of Organizations of Teachers in Suriname (FOLS), the Teachers’ Union (BvL), and the Alliance for Teachers in Suriname (ALS)—have collectively declared that educators can no longer sustain themselves on their current wages amid the country’s deteriorating economic climate.
The alarming situation has resulted in widespread demotivation among teaching professionals, triggering a significant brain drain that has created critical shortages of qualified instructors across all educational levels. Basic, secondary, and vocational schools throughout the nation are experiencing severe staffing deficits that threaten the quality of education delivery.
In response to this escalating crisis, union representatives convened emergency talks on Friday with President Jennifer Simons at Ravaksur Plus. The high-level dialogue included the Ministers of Interior Affairs and Finance, along with a specially appointed committee of experts tasked with addressing the emergency.
Following proposals from the Interior Minister, Ravaksur Plus will establish a dedicated working group incorporating representatives from FOLS, BvL, and ALS. This collaborative body will work alongside the presidential committee to comprehensively address all education-related challenges, including compensation structures and working conditions.
The working group’s primary objective is to implement immediate relief measures to improve educators’ living and working circumstances while simultaneously restoring the teaching profession’s attractiveness. Several concrete agreements emerged from the urgent discussions:
• All overtime payments for vocational teachers must be processed by Wednesday, February 4, 2026
• Retired educators reactivated to address staffing shortages will receive outstanding payments by end-February 2026
• All pending salary arrears for teaching staff will be settled promptly
• Teacher unions must submit their complete package of demands by February 4, 2026
Recognizing education’s fundamental role in developing critically-minded citizens, the unions expect the government to demonstrate urgent commitment to implementing comprehensive solutions that will restore stability to the education sector.
The joint declaration received official endorsement from FOLS and its member organizations (SOB, KOB, COB, BLTO, IOB), alongside the Teachers’ Union (BvL) and the Alliance for Teachers in Suriname (ALS).