Regency sets aside money for students

Regency sets aside money for students

JAYAPURA, Papua: The Puncak Jaya regency in Papua has allocated Rp 6 billion of this year's budget to help finance the education of Papuan students across Indonesia.

Israel Mom, secretary of the regency's educational planning agency, said here on Thursday the money would help improve the quality of local human resources, who would in turn contribute to the development of the province.

Some of the money also will be spent to repair dormitories for Puncak Jaya students living outside of Papua, including those in Makassar, Manado, Yogyakarta, Jakarta and Bali, he said.

Mom said the regency, particularly its remote areas, had a shortage of teachers, forcing the local administration to send Papuans outside of the province to study under the government's scholarship program.

This lack of teachers has hampered the development of education in the province, he said.

"Therefore, the Papuan government, through special autonomy, will prioritize education, in addition to health, infrastructure and the local people's economy," Mom said. --Antara