FORMER education minister Dr Nyan Gadsby-Dolly said that no student should be discriminated against based on their hair texture, but there should be grooming rules in place.

She was responding to the Ministry of Education release on Monday which sought to clarify student hairstyles and grooming policies following complaints about Fyzabad Secondary School’s rules for female students, with some parents, students, and activists describing it as discriminatory. A document from the school featured Afro-textured hairstyles labelled as “Samples of what is NOT ACCEPTED”.

In June 2023, then-minister Dr Nyan Gadsby-Dolly explained that 850 schools would have the authority to implement the “granular” details of the hair code, taking into account individual school cultures and denominational requirements.