Allocation for edn increases slightly

Allocation for the country's education sector, one of the sectors badly hit by coronavirus, has seen a slight increase in the proposed budget for the fiscal year of 2020-21 than the current fiscal year.
Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal proposed allocation of Tk 664 billion (Tk 66,401 crore) for the education sector for the upcoming fiscal while it was Tk 611.18 billion (Tk 61,118 crore) in the current budget for the FY 2019-20.
He earmarked Tk 249.37 billion (Tk 24,937 crore) for the primary and mass education ministry, Tk 331.18 billion (Tk 33,118 crore) for secondary and higher education division and Tk 83.45 billion (Tk 8,345 crore) for technical and madrasa education division.
About 40 million students are facing difficulties and their academic activities are being hampered in the coronavirus pandemic, the finance minister said in his budget speech in parliament on Thursday.
"You are aware that we have kept shut all educational institutions of the country since mid-March as part of our efforts to enforce social distancing to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus. This has eventually caused discontinuation of the regular academic activities of around four crore students across the country," he added.
"Our most important task in education for the next fiscal year would be to bring back continuity in the curriculum and recover from this loss in long study break," he said.
"The cabinet has approved the National School Meal Policy 2019, and under this policy, we are going to roll out midday meals to all primary schools across the country," he added.
"Works are underway to establish interactive classrooms in 503 schools, and soon we will provide internet connectivity to all primary schools, including two laptops and two multimedia projectors to each school," the minister said.
In addition, for the children of ethnic minorities, textbooks are being developed in their own alphabets and teachers with relevant language skills will be recruited, he added.
In the FY 2020-21, stipend will be provided to 557,000 male and over one million female students at the secondary level while same stipend will be provided to higher secondary and degree level students and stipend on performance in examinations.
Besides, the government has constructed new buildings in 1800 madrasas nationwide, and set up modern multimedia classrooms in 653 madrasas.

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