The numbers of students in Saudi private schools has decreased drastically amid the coronavirus pandemic, and with it the rates of employment, according to Ibrahim Al Salem, a major investor in private education, local media reported.

Al Salem, also a former head of the National Education Committee in the Council of Saudi Chambers, said the vacant seats in kindergartens may reach 90 per cent, with a dropout rate of 40 per cent for the elementary and intermediate stages, while secondary schools will witness the lowest dropout rates.