What solutions to mobilize resources to build schools?

Editor's note:The press and the People's Council play an important role in enhancing two-way communication and the connection between the elected representative body and voters. To continue promoting the effectiveness of the press and the People's Council, since September 2011, Nghe An Newspaper has coordinated with the Standing Committee of the Provincial People's Council to open a column: "Deputies of the Provincial People's Council "speak, act and listen", on Nghe An Daily and Nghe An e-newspaper.

(Baonghean) -The policy of temporarily stopping the collection of construction fees is no longer a current issue because the 2011-2012 school year is the fourth year that schools have implemented it. However, the issue will always be a current issue because this policy is posing the question: what is the source of funding for schools to invest in building school facilities and classrooms?

According to Article 105 of the 2005 Education Law, apart from tuition and admission fees, students and their families do not have to pay any other fees. In August 2008, the Ministry of Finance issued a document proposing to abolish school construction fees. In the 2008-2009 school year, the Government decided that schools should temporarily stop collecting school construction funds. To implement this policy, the Provincial People's Council took action by organizing many direct consultations with beneficiaries; officials, teachers and grassroots officials in 10 communes of 10 districts in the province to get their opinions; then there was a working program with the leaders of the Provincial People's Committee and a number of relevant provincial departments, branches and sectors to request appropriate policies, both to solve the immediate difficulties for schools when stopping collecting construction fees but not contrary to State regulations, while ensuring to create conditions and reduce difficulties for students.

Accordingly, in addition to stopping the collection of fees for building schools and classrooms, the Provincial People's Committee has a policy to mobilize voluntary contributions to build school and classroom facilities, when there is no compensation fund from the Central and the province. As a result, on average each school year, the whole province mobilizes about 40 billion VND, while the revenue from construction fees each year is about 63 - 70 billion VND. This creates a paradox that when the demand for investment in school and classroom facilities is increasingly high in the direction of spaciousness and modernity, the funds mobilized to serve this work are reduced. The second paradox is that when implementing voluntary mobilization, schools in urban areas or localities with good economic conditions have easier mobilization, but for schools in rural areas, where people's economic conditions are still poor and there are no businesses or economic units located in the area, mobilization is very difficult, leading to the fact that in this area, school and classroom facilities, which were already poor, are now even worse.

Mr. Le Van Ngo - Director of the Department of Education and Training, said: "In practice, after 3 years of implementation, schools have encountered many difficulties. Although at the same time implementing the policy of temporarily stopping the collection of construction fees, the State has had a program to solidify schools and classrooms, but this program is only for schools with bamboo and thatch in difficult areas, and has only been implemented for 2/3 of the program before stopping. There is no money for construction, but the need to repair classroom facilities, purchase learning equipment, build functional classrooms, playgrounds, and practice grounds is a regular task and cannot be delayed to ensure students' learning. With the desire to innovate and create conditions for their children to enjoy an increasingly modern education, in the spirit of the socialization movement launched by the Provincial People's Committee, at the beginning of each school year, teachers who should only worry about how to teach well now have to take on a new task: "socialization" movement, even being accused of overcharging in schools....".

Therefore, the "after" of stopping collecting school construction fees is always a hot issue at the beginning of each school year. Resolving the funding impasse so that schools can have the conditions to purchase and repair facilities and cover teaching and learning activities is in need of a satisfactory solution so that students can study in the best environment.

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