Govt education campaign shows signs of success: Juwono

Govt education campaign shows signs of success: Juwono

JAKARTA (JP): High public awareness of the need for education
has helped keep down the number of school dropouts according to
government estimates, Minister of Education and Culture Juwono
Sudarsono said on Wednesday.

This was one of a number of factors which Juwono said was
helping to keep children in school, particularly between
elementary and high school levels, despite worsening economic
hardship.

"The strong will of children and parents has greatly helped
the reduce dropout figures," Juwono said in a media conference on
the compulsory nine-year basic education program.

The Ministry reported that the number of pupils and students
who have dropped out of the education system has reached 2.5
million including university students, a number less than an
earlier forecast.

In June, Juwono said he expected between 6.5 million and 8
million students from all levels to drop out of school because
they would no longer be able to afford school fees.

On Wednesday he said that other factors which were helping
students stay in school included the government ban on state
schools charging fees other than those set by the government, the
extension to the deadline for school registration, government
subsidies to school operating costs and scholarship schemes.

Juwono said the government was also working to free students
from poor families of school fees altogether.

However, teachers have said the government-set admission fees
are unrealistic. It currently costs Rp 33,500 (US$3) to enroll in
a junior high school.

The government campaign to promote school attendance may also
have had a positive impact, Juwono said. The campaign includes
the ongoing television public service message with the jingle Ayo
Sekolah (Let's go to school).

The message, which is sponsored by the United Nations
Children's Fund (Unicef), features the popular actors Rano Karno
and Mandra.

Juwono said that education should be given equal priority to
efforts to obtain basic foodstuffs.

"Education is as important as basic needs. People's incomes
are determined by their education," Juwono said.

On Wednesday the Ministry announced that it would give out
scholarships to poor students of all ages to try to prevent more
students from dropping out. The scholarships will be awarded in
conjunction with the Coordinating Ministry for People's Welfare
and Poverty Eradication.

Fifty-percent of the scholarships have been distributed across
the country through the state run post office network, PT Pos
Indonesia.

But unlike before, scholarships now prioritize those who
cannot afford education instead of those with high grades.

"Before, scholarships were awarded to intelligent students,
but now they are for the needy who want to be educated,"
Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare and Poverty
Eradication Haryono Suyono said.

The government has pledged Rp 762 trillion for scholarships
and Rp 375 trillion to support elementary, junior and senior high
schools.

Another scholarship fund of Rp 174 trillion is to be given to
university students, including postgraduates. Each scholarship
will be worth Rp 720,000 a year.

Haryono said an improvement in the number of children
receiving nine compulsory years of education had also been
recorded. In 1994 the government made it mandatory for all
children to receive six years of elementary education and three
years of high school education.

Slight progress toward this goal was made in North Sumatra,
Lampung, West Java, Central Java, West Kalimantan, East Timor,
East Nusa Tenggara, North Sulawesi and Bali.

"The overall decline in numbers receiving the nine-year basic
education has only been 2.3 percent since the crisis began,"
Haryono added. (01)