School supply grant, standardised textbooks in 2024

Finance Minister Colm Imbert said he will introduce a school supply grant of $1,000 for needy students in 2024.

He said the initiative would cost $65 million and is expected to benefit 65,000 needy students.

The funds are expected to go towards buying school supplies such as uniforms, shoes, book bags, stationery and books.

He said the ministry was also aware of the "ever-changing booklists, which are unwarranted in the areas requiring little change, such as science subjects like chemistry.

"These continuous additions and alterations to school booklists...create additionally yearly expenses for families. In 2024, therefore, we intend to consult with stakeholders in the education sector, for standardised textbooks as far as is practical, and eliminate the need for unnecessary new textbooks arriving on the curriculum every year."

He said the practice was putting too much strain on needy families who cannot pass on books from one generation of children to another.

Imbert said programmes would be developed to train technical and vocational teachers to fill vacancies in current technical and vocational courses.