The Ministry of Education and Research is to issue an order regulating the work of groups with extended hours in schools. The costs for the extended program are to vary between 350 and 500 lei per month, depending on the number of hours, IPN reports.

“Chisinau municipality decided to reduce the costs and stop providing a highly appreciated and necessary service for parents, namely the groups with extended hours. You remember well that for three years the city of Chisinau had financed this service from the municipal budget, and at the beginning of 2024 decided to stop this service. Probably for the same reasons why it decided to reduce the costs for personal assistants – the over-borrowing last year in the electoral context,” Minister of Education Dan Perciun told a press conference.

According to him, in this situation, even if no funding is allocated from the municipal budget, the Chisinau Municipal Council had to approve a methodology to determine the costs for the extended program. But this didn’t happen. Respectively, the Ministry decided to approve a methodology as a solution for parents and schools.

“There will be regulations approved by the Ministry. We will publish them tomorrow. We will very clearly stipulate how much these groups with extended hours cost, depending on their regime, whether they are of three hours or of six hours, and institutions will be able to collect these fees from parents, if these are willing to pay for them. The price will probably vary between 350 and 500 lei per month,” said the official.

After the Ministry approves the regulations, the schools will have discussions with parents to agree on the functionality of the groups with extended hours.

Two months ago, officials of the Chisinau General Division of Education, Youth and Sports announced fixed fees for groups with extended hours in the schools of Chisinau - 360 lei per month – for the program extended by three hours and 690 lei for that extended by for six hours. Payments were to be made on the basis of the voucher issued by the institution. Children from socially vulnerable families were to attend the groups with extended hours free of charge.

They also said that three years ago, in accordance with the Education Code, the City Hall identified money to additionally finance schools, covering costs related to the extended program. But “together with the pressure exerted by the Government on the municipal budget, the Division repealed the orders for financing the groups with extended program, but the groups continued work. The work of such groups is stipulated in the regulations worked out by the Ministry of Education and Research and in the Education Code. Through the repeal orders, the rights to organize the work of groups were transmitted to schools, which are to decide on these activities.”