Fiji: Students Face Hard Times

[suchandra]

Students face hard times

 

AMELIA VUNILEBA

Friday, June 13, 2008

THE problem of no bus fares, no lunch and no stationery is very real for some students attending Korovou Primary School in Tailevu North.

Headteacher Yabaki Vosaicake said that of the 200-plus students, about 30 per cent could hardly make it to school because they have no bus fare, lunch, stationery and even uniforms.

He said the problems surfaced last year but the school was also struggling to meet expenses and could not stretch its finance far enough to make some provisions for students facing financial difficulties.

"The school can only help in terms of stationery such as pencils and books," said Mr Vosaicake. He said the school had, on some occasions, paid for a vehicle to transport students to their homes because they did not have bus fare.

He said this normally applied to children who lived along the same route.

Mr Vosaicake said there was more the school wanted to do to help their students but its hands were tied however, this did not stop the staff from doing whatever they could to ensure the students kept attending school.

Krishna Vedic School headteacher Jagdishwar Prasad said students at his school did not face the problem because many of them lived within the vicinity of the school.

Meanwhile, the interim Minister for Education, Filipe Bole, while commending Save the Children Fiji for helping students facing difficulties in Vatukoula, said that his ministry remained committed to the education and welfare of students in the country.

Mr Bole said the Education ministry would do all it could to assist the parents of needy children.

In a statement, he said he was encouraged by the action of non-government organisations such as Save the Children Fiji which had lent its support to the needy students during these challenging times.

Vatukoula's story reflects the hard times faced by many.