The Ministry of Education, in preparation for the new school year, has commissioned a taskforce responsible to address situations of abnormal hike in school fees across the country. The taskforce is expected to initiate engagements with education stakeholders and heads of private, faith-based and school secretariats to ensure that schools remain honest and desist from exploiting students and parents.
The taskforce is authorized to review and analyze schools’ current information sheets in comparison to what was charged in the last two years and report any abnormal hike in fees to the Senior Management Team (SMT) of the Ministry of Education, along with recommendations. The exercise will also cover vetting of public schools to ensure no public school charges any additional or extreme fee other than the approved amount agreed by the Parent-Teacher Association (PTA), intended to support the school system management. Notably, it is agreed and endorsed by the Ministry of Education, in consultation with education stakeholders as requested by the PTA, to charge the following fees accordingly by level: ECE, L$3,500; Primary, L$1,000; Junior High, L$2,000; and Senior High, L$3,000.
“The Ministry insists that private schools will be penalized for unjustifiable increment if the additional fees do not commensurate with the service provided. Any public school administrator found over-charging students will result to immediate dismissal,” the Ministry of Education observed.
