49 EDUCATION: ORIGINS AND RELIGION The survey also indicated how ethnic, religious and geographical variables play a role in determining whether stateless children can access education. For instance, the Dom communities, especially in some regions, have lower enrollment rates than stateless from other cultural or religious backgrounds such as Druze or Christians. Looking at the cultural backgrounds of stateless persons, Dom appear to have the highest illiteracy rates with 75% out of stateless Dom having not attended school, compared to 43% among Bedouins and 29% among Kurds. In comparison, only 12% of Christians and 10% of Druze among the stateless population did not go to school. Geographically, the highest rates of illiteracy were measured in Iqlim el Kharroub (Chouf), informal settlements, Palestinian camps and adjacent gatherings in Greater Beirut, which represent high density spaces gathering Dom communities. “ They are Nawar, they are dirty. We can’t admit them in our school. — School teacher, Iqlim el Kharoub “ Fig 10. Which level of education did you reach? 13% 30% 30% 56% 69% 61% 75% I faced many difficulties with my former husband, to the point where I had to take my children out of school 70% — Lebanese mother to non-registered Dom children Dom 60% 43% 29% Bedouins Did not go to school Kurds 35% Shi'a Went to school 12% 10% Christian Druze Reached higher education © 2023 Siren Associates. All Rights Reserved.