BRUSSELS

The use of smartphones by students in primary and secondary schools in Belgium's French-speaking regions and the capital Brussels has been banned, local media said on Thursday.

According to a decision taken by the Wallonia-Brussels Education Network (WBE), primary and secondary school students will be banned from bringing smartphones with them as of the 2024-2025 academic year, which is due to start next Monday in 373 French-language schools.

The ban will cover 132,600 students.

In the Flemish-speaking part of the country, the government is also expected to agree to such a ban.

All schools in Belgium have their own rules, with some banning all electronic devices from school premises, while others have been flexible.

The WBE reported that the decision was taken because students were taking images of each other with smartphones and sharing them on social media platforms, leading to a rising number of harassment offenses.

*Writing by Merve Berker