Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has announced plans to ban burqas and niqabs in schools and impose a cap on the number of foreign students per class, as part of her broader campaign against illegal immigration.
In a statement at an annual gathering of her party’s youth, Meloni declared: “You must go to school with your face uncovered, and in Italy, no one, in the name of a real or supposed tradition, can decide that a young woman must hide herself.”
The proposed measures include requiring parents of foreign students facing integration difficulties to learn Italian and setting a maximum number of non-citizens per classroom. Meloni emphasized that if the number of students who do not speak Italian becomes large—or even the majority—this is no longer integration but neglect.
According to a research study, approximately 12% of students in Italy are not citizens. Meloni argued that classrooms with too many foreign students hinder integration efforts, noting one child without Italian proficiency can typically learn quickly with classmates and teachers.
Meloni, elected four years ago by Italians seeking stricter immigration policies, has consistently advanced measures to curb illegal migration despite criticism from left-leaning opponents. She did not specify the exact numerical limit for foreign students per class.
Previously, Meloni threatened to terminate an immigration agreement with Spain after reports of Moroccan migrants overwhelming Ceuta’s border in northern Africa. In a translated statement, she described the situation as “shocking” and warned that uncontrolled illegal immigration poses a real threat to Europe’s security.
The immigrant population in Italy has grown from about 423,000 in 1985 to nearly 5.8 million by 2024.
