(Dutch News) The number of pupils attending Islamic primary schools has soared 60% over the past 10 years, according to education ministry figures obtained by the Volkskrant.
In total, 15,000-plus Muslim under-12-year-olds are attending an Islamic faith school, compared with 9,300 in 2018. Nevertheless, there are just 54 Islamic schools in the Netherlands, accounting for a tiny proportion of the 6,700 primary schools nationwide.
The Dutch constitution gives people the right to set up a school on the basis of a religion or other personal convictions, if they can prove enough people would attend.
Local councils assess the applications and the schools are financed by the state.
