12,000 children cannot afford basic schooling

JAKARTA (JP): Around 12,000 children in the capital who are of elementary school age will not be able to obtain formal education in the coming school year, but the city administration can afford to help one fourth of them only.

Head of the City Education Agency Masrul Nim said on Tuesday that poverty was the main reason for their absence from school.

"The children's parents think that school fees will cost them so much that they cannot afford them because they are poor people," Masrul told reporters.

He said the city administration planned to cover the school expenses of 600 children who will go to state elementary schools in 15 poor subdistricts across the capital.

Besides exempting them from school fees, the children will receive a pair of shoes and four uniforms each when the school year begins in mid-July.

The city administration has allocated Rp 516 million (US$46,909) from its 2001 budget to finance the program, Masrul said. Based on the budget allocation, a student will cost the city Rp 860,000.

It remains unclear whether the scholarship program for the children will continue next year.

Masrul said last year the city administration also helped another 600 school newcomers.

The city has 2,408 state elementary schools, 544 of them are located in poor subdistricts.

There are around 800,000 elementary school children in the capital, with more than 75 percent of them attending state run schools.

Elementary schools appointed to admit the poor children for the upcoming academic year are located in South Petojo, Galur and Karang Anyar in Central Jakarta, Kampung Manggis, Kebayoran Lama and Manggarai in South Jakarta, Kampung Melayu, Rawa Bunga and North Cipinang Besar in East Jakarta, Cilincing, Papanggo and Tanjung Priok in North Jakarta and Tegal Alur, Kapuk and Kamal in West Jakarta.

Besides providing scholarships for poor children, Masrul said that the city administration had also planned to provide education for 2,500 street children this year.

"The street children will learn reading, writing and religious studies," he said.

He said that groups of 10 street children would join a class in a nearby public place, such as community unit (RW) office.

He said to help the students, the city administration was seeking 250 teachers.

"The teachers will receive an honorarium and transportation fees," Masrul said, without mentioning the amount of funds needed to finance the program.

He said the students, most of them street singers and traders, could join the program without disrupting their daily work. (jun)