Increase budgetary allocation to education

While educationists and NGOs working in the education sector have long been demanding an increased allocation for education in our national budget and were hoping that the government would have some specific plan this year to recover the learning loss created by the pandemic, it is unfortunate that the concerns raised by them have not been taken into consideration by the government. While educationists suggested that at least 15 percent of the budget should be allocated for education, it remains stagnant at 11.69 percent in the proposed budget, which is only 2.09 percent of the GDP. 

We wonder why our investment in education is still the lowest among the South Asian countries in terms of GDP. Why can't we prioritise this sector along with other priority sectors? A recent survey conducted by the Campaign for Popular Education (CAMPE) warned that the pandemic might increase the dropout rate in schools which may give rise to child labour, child marriage and early pregnancy. What are the government's plans to address these issues?

The finance minister said that the government's most important task in education for the next fiscal year would be to bring back continuity in the curriculum and cover the learning loss caused by the long study break. He also said that the government allocated sufficient resources to achieve this objective. However, we do not understand what he meant by "sufficient resources" and how the government would make up for the learning loss with this limited allocation.

Around 40 million students across the country have suffered discontinuation of regular academic activities due to Covid-19. While it would take a long time to recover the loss even with higher budgetary allocation and specific recovery plans, how can the government expect to address these complex issues with the current allocation and without any special initiatives?

When educational institutions reopen, increased allocation will be needed for school stipend programmes, school meals, wash facilities and health hygiene. And during the closure, the government must spend money to provide the teachers with the necessary training so that all of them are prepared to take online classes. Allocation is also needed for giving the teachers their salaries on time. Moreover, for enlisting the new educational institutions under the Monthly Pay Order (MPO) scheme, separate allocation is needed.

We hope that these issues are addressed in the final budget after proper discussions in parliament, considering the experts' opinions. While Unesco recommends that six percent of GDP and 20 percent of the national budget should be spent in the education sector, it is disappointing that we still could not increase our allocation in education to at least 15 percent of the national budget.