TTUTA: Primary schools suffer while ministry gets more $$

While the Ministry of Education continues to get the top allocations in the budget, primary schools continue to suffer ,says head of the Unified Teachers Association (TTUTA) Lynsley Doodhai.

The Ministry of Education yesterday received $7.392 billion in the 2018/2019 budget read by Finance Minister Colm Imbert.

In 2017, the ministry also received the highest allocation, of $7.29 billion.

Doodhai said over the years the ministry has consistently been receiving the largest allocations amongst all government ministries, but this is not reflected in upgrades to primary schools.

“When I heard they have recieved $7.392 billion, it does not really reflect on the schools, because while they have gotten the largest allocation, we still continue to see over the short period of time last year the ministry had problems with funding.

“Primary schools are suffering due to the none funding of the ministry. The direct funding which is used to buy requisition items for schools to be refurbished is not being done.

" In the last budget there was allocation for this and...the majority of schools did not receive direct funding to repair schools or pay contractors.”

Doodhai said he hopes budget funding will be made available to all primary schools.

He said up to last week there were delays in payments to food caterers, maxi taxi operators, and other vitally important people contracted by the ministry.

“I hope with this allocation we can see more timely payments, so we would not have a situation as last week, where the maxi-taxi drivers withheld their services and children were deprived of the ability to reach to school by the maxi-taxi drivers.

“I also want to point out that teachers are being paid a 2014 salary and we are almost in 2019. I would hope that there would have been some allocation in the budget to cater for salary negotiations for our nation's teachers, because we are almost five years out of the last agreement, which was signed in 2014.”

He said the association expects salary negotiation will start soon and money would be allocated to pay salaries to teachers.