In many parts of the world, it’s back-to-school season. But as those students prepare for another year of academic assignments and late-night study sessions, the #NoExamShutdown campaign has been assessing Middle East and North Africa (MENA) authorities on their success in keeping their classrooms and countries connected during exam season — and we’ve found that very few of them have made the grade.
The rights-violating practice of enacting internet shutdowns during exam periods is increasingly common in the MENA region. At the time of writing this post, we had documented seven exam-related shutdowns so far in 2024, compared to 12 in 2023, eight in 2022 , and 11 in 2021. But these shutdowns don’t just impact students and schools; they send entire countries and communities into the dark at the same time, with wide-reaching and sometimes life-threatening ramifications. As the #NoExamShutdown campaign has exposed, more and more countries are joining the shutdown “hall of shame,” leaving lessons to be learned and homework to be assigned.
Bottom of the class
- Algeria is still struggling with the basics
Algeria’s annual tradition of disrupting internet access during Baccalaureate exams dates back to 2016, when authorities blocked social media platforms after exam questions were leaked online. This year, during the June 9-13 exam period, the government once again imposed two multi-hour internet blackouts every morning and afternoon. Despite recent official reassurances of minimal interference, the data tells a different story. Cloudflare Radar has analyzed how Algeria’s internet traffic took a notable hit during this period, albeit not as severely as in other countries we discuss below. People took to social media to express their dissatisfaction with the widespread connectivity problems, while the Open Observatory of Network Interference (OONI) recorded anomalies in popular messaging apps, suggesting that the blocks coincided with the start of exams and the moment when students were sitting exams.
- Syria continues to fail the test
In Syria, internet shutdowns during exams have become a sinister annual ritual; the country’s major service provider, Syrian Telecom, casually announces the blackout schedule as if it were an unquestionable norm. This year, during the final exams from May 26 to June 13, the country endured multi-hour outages that decimated internet traffic. In a stark and grim reminder of the devastating impact that exam-related shutdowns can have beyond the classroom, a woman and her three children lost their lives in a fire in the Al Dimas area of Damascus, after the local fire brigade failed to receive timely emergency reports due to the blackout.
Progress, promises, and wasted potential
- Iraq’s mixed report
In Iraq, the ongoing debate over exam-related internet shutdowns has intensified a power struggle within the government. The Ministry of Communication, which opposes these blackouts, even rejected a shutdown request from the Ministry of Education in 2023. So it was disheartening to then witness the reversal of this decision, and to see internet shutdowns imposed on multiple occasions in June, July, August, and September 2023.
This year, the Ministry of Education’s desire to cut connectivity once again prevailed. On May 19, the Ministry of Communication announced a two-hour internet cutoff between 6-8 a.m. during general exams for intermediate studies. The Ministry of Communication confirmed that this measure was requested by the Ministry of Education.
As part of the #NoExamShutdown campaign, the #KeepItOn coalition wrote to Iraqi authorities in May 2024, urging them to keep the internet on during exams. We successfully delivered the letter to the Ministry of Communication’s office, which acknowledged our letter but nevertheless proceeded to shut down the internet. As of writing, reports indicated that another 6-8 am daily internet blackout was planned for the next round of exams for the third middle grade, taking place between the end of August and mid-September. On August 29, Cloudflare Radar recorded early morning internet shutdowns, suggesting that Iraqi authorities are continuing this harmful practice.
- Jordan blocks any progress
In Jordan, the return of app blocking near schools is a troubling development. Every year between 2015 and 2022, the government instructed internet service providers (ISPs) to block access to messaging apps during the national Tawjihi exams for secondary students. These restrictions were justified as being geographically limited to areas near and around exam halls and timed solely to the exam period. While it’s difficult to confirm highly localized platform blocks with current measurement tools, it’s clear that these shutdowns were unjustified and disproportionate.
After a year of reprieve in 2023, this restrictive practice has resurfaced, marking a step backward for the country. In 2024, the Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (TRC) announced that “it will temporarily block all messaging apps,” justifying the measure as a precaution to prevent cheating and leaks, and to ensure fairness and credibility of the exam results.
- Mauritania is back to bad habits
While Mauritania may not have as long of a track record as other countries when it comes to exam-related shutdowns, we’re seeing a worrying pattern re-emerge. In June 2019, authorities took the unprecedented step of imposing daily internet and social media blackouts from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. during the Baccalaureate exams. Until this year, we’d hoped that was a one-time “lesson learned” occurrence. Unfortunately, 2024 saw Mauritanian authorities once again reach for the off-switch to “prevent cheating during exams,” following a 22-day internet blackout in July aimed at quelling post election protests. Three distinct internet shutdowns were reported on August 12-13, coinciding with the Baccalaureate exams.
Going global
Exam-related internet shutdowns are becoming an increasingly global issue, extending beyond the MENA region. For instance, Kenya blocked Telegram during 2023’s national exams; Iran disrupted internet access during university entrance exams of January 2023; and in India, the government of Rajasthan state imposed similar measures in 2024.
As mentioned above, the consequences of recurring exam-related shutdowns go far beyond merely cutting off communication; they hinder access to life-saving information, vital vaccinations services, and emergency services, and in some cases, can literally be a matter of life-and-death. In addition, they severely impact business and economic development. Such shutdowns represent significant human rights violations. In cutting off access to communication, self-expression, and vital information, they infringe on the right to freedom of expression, as recognized by international human rights standards and by the UN Human Rights Council. Internet shutdowns are often disproportionate and unjustified, failing to meet the principle of proportionality required by international law.
Setting homework for the year ahead
This academic year, governments must abandon the harmful and rights-violating practice of exam-related internet shutdowns, once and for all. Policymakers should condemn and prevent such shutdowns, and work to ensure open, unfettered access to the internet at all times.
Civil society also has a critical role to play. With exam-related shutdowns fast becoming a global phenomenon, we need to unite and amplify our efforts, now more than ever. We welcome new members within the #NoExamShutdown campaign and #KeepItOn coalition, and we invite all partners to join forces by sharing our best practices, our stories, and our creative ideas to fight internet shutdowns. Together, we can relegate exam-related internet shutdowns to the history textbooks.