#Budget2018: 80% increase in allowance for teachers who serve in remote areas

In an effort to improve the access to quality education in the hinterland communities, the Government has decided to increase the allowances by 80% for those teachers who decide to go and work in the remote areas. 

#Budget2018:  80% increase in allowance for teachers who serve in remote areas

The Government of Guyana will continue to focus on the education sector over the next fiscal year.  Several measures and initiatives were announced by the Finance Minister during his Monday afternoon budget presentation.

In an effort to improve the access to quality education in the hinterland communities, the Government has decided to increase the allowances by 80% for those teachers who decide to go and work in the remote areas.

Mr. Jordan told the National Assembly that “in order to ensure that we improve the quality of education and the opportunities for our young people, the availability of good teachers is vital, and we must both retain and move additional teachers to those locations. As such, Budget 2018 caters for an 80 percent increase in the Remote Area Incentive (RAI). Persons currently in receipt of $5,000 and $7,000 will see increases to $9,000 and $12,600, respectively.”

He said the government is not pleased that in many of the hinterland communities the quality of education offered is way below what is offered in other parts of the country.

Additionally, the administration also intends to focus more on technical vocational education across the country, including the the hinterland communities.

To this end, Mr. Jordan announced that Government will support the construction of practical instruction departments at secondary schools in Mabaruma, Bartica, Mahdia, and St. Ignatius, and practical instruction centres in Fellowship, Beterverwagting and Hopetown.

“The upgrade and expansion of these centres will create an enhanced learning environment necessary to equip students with marketable skills”, according to Minister Jordan.

The Minister said across the country, more schools will also be built and rehablitated as part of the government’s push to improve the education sector.

The administration intends to focus too on the training of more teachers. He said “we will continue to add to the pool of trained teachers, which currently stands at 77 percent, in order to ensure that each child is afforded the best possible education. This year, we expect that 450 graduates will join the trained teacher workforce and 37 untrained teachers will complete the teacher upgrading programme, to prepare for the trained teachers‘ certificate programme.”

At the tertiary level, the University of Guyana will receive a subvention of over $2.4 billion, in 2018. Jordan said  “it is expected that the skill sets within the leadership of the University will ably manage these resources in a fiscally-responsible manner.”

 

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