Great News | Cabinet Endorses 12 Recommendations by Parliamentary Working Committee on Education - Allocated K7.826 million

Post Courier report, 13th of April 2015...

The National Executive Council has recently endorsed the Ministry of Education’s response to the Parliamentary Referral Committee on Education’s (PRCE) recommendations, tabled in Parliament in August 2014. 

Prime Minister. Peter O’Neill, said cabinet has taken note of the Department of Education’s (DoE) policy paper and endorsed the Ministerial Statement together with the response made by the Ministry of Education. He said the policy paper and responses come after PRCE recommended:

1. Review of functions and responsibilities of the DoE and Teaching Services Commission (TSC) in the Management of teachers’ salaries and entitlements.
2. TSC to review Teaching Services Act 1988 Section 9.
3.  Review of relevant sections of the Teaching Service and Education Acts on appointment policies and procedures with the view to transfer off powers and functions to the Provincial Education Board.
4. Extension of tenure appointment from current three years to five years.
5. Review of ALESCO pay system enabling it to accommodate processing of all salaries and entitlements.
6. Transfer of full ALESCO Pay System and powers to the Provincial Education Board.
7. Payment of teachers’ leave fares direct into their accounts.
8.  Annual teacher manpower update to be conducted in the first quarter of the school year.
9. TCS to assume financial autonomy as a separate entity of State as per the Teaching Services Act 1988.
10. Review of policy, process and procedures in the administration of retrenchment, retirement and resignation of teachers.
11. Establishment of a centralized modern electronic teacher information database that is easily available for provincial education authorities and other relevant stakeholders to have access.
12. Review of the TCS administrative and manpower structural requirements and resourcing the Commission, enabling it greater autonomy to effectively and efficiently administer and regulate powers and functions.

”Cabinet has also approved K7, 826, 000.00 funding for the implementation of plans and programs for 2015 not budgeted and appropriated in the 2015 Budget Appropriation for DoE and TSC,” PM O’Neill said.

SHIT HAS HIT THE FAN | PNG Government To Declare State of Emergency On Tuition Fee Free Education Policy

Reports have revealed that a school in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville was closed, others were on the verge of closing. In my previous posts, I highlighted the need to be cautious about Tuition Free Policy and 'the risk' of stopping schools from charging project fees - school closing prematurely. 

Having written widely about the policy and platform of the current government on education, I think the government needs a reality check. Many schools are on the verge of closing merely a quarter into the academic year due to lack of funds. 

The best this government needs to do is to stop a school from closing. If one school closes, that will mean either the government's TFF policy has failed or education officials have failed the government. 

Either way, one thing is for sure: a school must not shut down due to non payment of fees. If that happens that would reflect on the government's inability to pay, monitor and control its policy on free education. 

Another point worth mentioning is the amount (K605 million) earmarked for free education this year. The Post Courier reported that schools' population in the country is 1.9 million. Conservatively, about 2 million students are eligible for the TFF nationwide. 

This implies that, on average, the government would have paid K302.50 per child. This should have raised red lights earlier in the year. By this I mean, the government (Department of Education) should have allowed schools to charge project fees to keep them going. It was done since 2012 when Peter O'Neill government introduced its TFF policy. Why changing it? 

So, here we are! What can be done differently to make it work? I think the onus is now on the government to restore any lost confidence. The government must pay up. 

Forced closure of schools begs the question of trust. Will the stakeholders in the education sector and parents trust the government or any of its future plans on education? 

It would not be good to see the government using education (the future of young people) as a political football. Scoring points to win election is one thing, but playing around with the education of a nation is a serious matter. It must be considered carefully.