New in School Funding: Insufficient Students - Expenses Covered by Local Governments 0 12

According to the draft law, teachers' salaries will not be funded from budgetary resources if the number of students in a specific class group does not meet the quantitative indicators established by the Cabinet of Ministers. In this case, the salaries of teachers in the respective class group will be financed from the funds of the educational institution's founder, and the state will participate in their financing according to the criteria and procedures established by the Cabinet of Ministers.

If the number of students does not meet the quantitative indicators set by the Cabinet of Ministers, the local government will be required to ensure the payment of teachers' salaries in the respective class group of the educational institutions it has established at least to the same extent as it would be funded from the state budget.

According to the Ministry of Education and Science, the existing network of educational institutions contributes to the fragmentation of teachers' workloads, and increasing the lowest salary rate for teachers does not ensure a significant increase in each teacher's salary.

To ensure the quality of education in small classes and retain teachers in these institutions, a large number of teachers and, consequently, more funding are necessary.

The expenses for the existing network of educational institutions are high and increasing due to declining birth rates and urbanization, emphasizes the Ministry of Education and Science.

The greatest disproportion is observed among primary schools, which account for 46.4% of all educational institutions but only 23.5% of students.

In rural areas and sparsely populated settlements, 11% of the total number of students reside, while 37.3% of the total number of educational institutions are located there.