Education

EDUCATION EDUCATION

The education sector of Nepal did not experience significant development during the review period. Educational institutions that had slowly started operating physical classes, after over 10 months of closure, were forced to shut down physical classes once again after the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic hit the nation. All pre-scheduled examination including the Secondary Education Examination (SEE) and the Grade 12 examination have been postponed until further notice.

Nepal bhasa made mandatory in

schools inside KMC: All private and public schools inside the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) would now have to teach Nepal Bhasa as a compulsory subject from Grades I to VIII. The KMC officials made the decision to make the subject mandatory utilizing the authority granted by the Local Government Operation Act 2017, which allows local governments to incorporate one subject reflecting the local culture, tradition, history, language, or any technical education. The new subject in the curriculum is aimed at preserving Newa cultural values by helping young Newa students learn their language, art, and culture, while helping non-Newa students understand the rich Newa culture and heritage. Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) has started hiring Nepal Bhasa teachers for public schools and has asked private schools to start training teachers for the subject.67

Three local levels of Solukhumbu district announced fully literate:

Necha Salyan rural municipality, Solududhkunda municipality, and Thulung Dudhkoshi rural municipality of Solukhumbu District were announced fully literate according to officials at the municipalities. In Thulung Dudhkoshi rural municipality, 98.5% of the residents were announced to be literate. According to Asim Rai, chairperson of the Thulung Dudhkoshi rural municipality, the local body had run a literacy campaign targeting 916 people between the ages of 16 and 60, out of which 902 people were announced literate even though the rural municipality has a population of over 22,000 residents.68

Free broadband internet connected in 4,179 schools: As of mid-April 2021, 4,179 secondary schools across Nepal had been provided with free broadband internet. Under the Rural Telecommunications Development Fund (RTDF), Nepal Telecommunications Authority (NTA) initiated 18 projects aiming to provide high speed broadband internet across rural areas of Nepal. A total of 5,225 schools in 702 local levels are to receive free internet under the program. Almost 80% of these schools have been connected to broadband internet, with only 1,046 schools in 88 local levels remaining.69

Government shuts schools amidst

second wave of COVID-19: The Government of Nepal, on the recommendation of the COVID-19 Crisis Management Committee (CCMC) decided to shut down physical classes for all educational institutions in the country on April 26, 2021, until further notice due to the surge in COVID-19 cases.70 The Ministry of Health and Population had earlier recommended the closure of schools in urban areas after COVID-19 cases in schoolchildren and their families started rising. As of early April 2021, 14% of the total infections reported was seen in children.71 Likewise, the CCMC also recommended universities to postpose all pre-scheduled examinations as well.

SEE and grade 12 examinations

suspended: The National Examinations Board (NEB) on 10 May 2021 made the decision to postpone the SEE and the Grade 12 examination until further notice; SEE was scheduled to start on May 27, 2021, while the Grade 12 exam was scheduled to start on June 9, 2021. With the COVID-19 pandemic crisis getting out of hand, conducting the previously scheduled exams physically was out of the question. The decision to postpone the exams have brought relief to students and parents against possible infection risks.72

Budget Highlights :

The federal budget for the upcoming FY was unveiled on May 29, 2021, through an ordinance. The Government of Nepal allocated a budget of NPR 180.4 billion (USD 1.50 billion) out of the NPR 1.64 trillion (USD 13.6 billion) national budget for the education sector for the FY 2021/22. The Ministry of Education has received a huge portion of the country’s budget (approximately 11% of the total budget). The amount indicates a 5.16% increase as compared to the amount allocated in 2020. The major provisions of the budget are as follows:

The government allocated NPR 10 billion (USD 830 million) for the President Educational Reform Program to build well-equipped classrooms, computer labs, teacher training, playgrounds, laboratories, and other educational infrastructure.

• The government increased the salary of child development teachers and school staff to NPR 15,000 (USD 124.59).73

• NPR 8.73 billion (USD 725 million) has been allocated to expand the mid-day meal program to benefit 3.5 million students.

• The government announced the “One health worker in each school” campaign.

• The budget includes arrangements for scholarships to protect the right to education of economically and socially marginalized and endangered communities including Chepang, Raute, Badi, Majhi, Musahar, persons with disabilities, families of martyrs, conflict victims, families of Covid-19 victims, and HIV / AIDS infected children.74

In a COVID-19 world, it is not easy for school teachers to adapt to a new virtual format of teaching as they have to adopt new technological knowledge to connect best with their students. Thus, in terms of the federal budget, the increase in the salary of child development teachers is a good way to incentivize better quality of online education. Additionally, the low-interest rate (1%) on laptop loans for students is a much-needed measure. The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the face of education (at least temporarily) and has made it almost impossible for students to learn anything without a laptop. This could cut off underprivileged students’ access to virtual education and consequently widen the gap between the rich and the poor. However, rather than providing concessional low-interest loans to students for the purchase of laptops, the government should provide free laptops/tablets to all students who cannot afford them so that they are not disheartened from further pursuing an education. Moreover, while the increase in salaries of child development teachers is a positive step, NPR 15,000 is a low amount and there is some scope for improvement. Finally, the increase in the allocation of funds to the President Educational Reform Program from last year’s NPR 6 billion (USD 49.8 million) to the new NPR 10 billion (USD 83 million) doesn’t seem necessary at the moment, especially when the country is in lockdown and students are attending classes from home. This expenditure should be implemented when the country is back to normal, and for now, the money should be put towards the health sector to vaccinate as many people as fast as possible.

OUTLOOK

With the COVID-19 crisis spiraling out of control, uncertainty in the education sector seems to be on the rise. The prohibitory orders imposed for the control of the second wave of the pandemic has further pushed the future of students into uncertainty. The lack of preparedness in terms of increasing virtual learning opportunities for most public-school students across Nepal has adversely impacted learning activities. Likewise, the lack preparation from the government, the NEB, and the universities towards implementing alternative plans instead of conducting physical examinations can also be considered as a reason for the grim outlook of Nepal’s education sector.