Bahrain Mirror: Bahrain Transparency Society asked the Education Ministry to be transparent and publish the names of scholarship distribution results along with the name, average of graduation, university name and specialty.  

In a statement issued on July 24, 2019, regarding the scholarships, the youths society called on the Ministry of Education to publish the available scholarships, whether granted by the ministry in its 2019-2020 plan, or those provided by large companies or granted by foreign governments through their embassies in Bahrain.

It also called for "following the principle of transparency and publishing the results of the distribution of scholarships, including name, graduation average, university name and specialty."

It said "the 40% allocation of the results on the personal interview with the Special Committee for this purpose (as in previous years) is a diminution of the study efforts exerted by the superior students. The society emphasizes that the student and his parents are more appropriate to choose the academic specialization in accordance with Bahrain's future plan and the needs of the labor market. The society demands that the interview with the Committee be canceled."

The society statement explained that the complaints "are repeated annually by some of the superiors and their parents, especially those with high averages- 95% and above in the results of the high school- against the ministry's continued failure to grant them the opportunity to study university according to their first wishes or close to them, which they consider to be a confiscation of their efforts in achieving advanced scientific results."

The society calls on the ministry to announce in details and publish the results of the distribution of scholarships in the local press, in accordance with the principle of transparency and the right to access information guaranteed by the Constitution of the Kingdom of Bahrain and to verify that the Ministry of Education has followed fair and professional standards in the distribution of scholarships to superior students without discrimination or favoritism

The society has demanded since 2011 the ministry to publish this information and stressed its importance, but the ministry has not responded to any of the society's demands or appeals from the parents of the students.

The society considers this to be a citizen's right and the ministry should respond to these requests. The society also considers that depriving these outstanding people of the opportunities to study the majors they wish to do is contrary to Bahrain's commitments as mentioned in the Anti-Discrimination Convention in education arising from the General Conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.