The minister of education’s order on the functioning of groups with extended hours in schools and setting of fees for them was formulated with a number of deviations, deputy head of the General Division of Education, Youth and Sports Andrei Pavaloi stated in the ordinary meeting of officials of municipal services. He noted that under such conditions, the document cannot be carried out, IPN reports.

“The Ministry didn’t publish any analysis or impact research study. The draft wasn’t subject to public consultations and to anticorruption expertise. The minister of education’s order of March 22, 2024 was issued with a great delay, of about two months. In the meantime, the parents had to deal with this problem themselves. The parents were abandoned for two months because, based on a decision taken by the Chisinau Commission for Emergency Situations, we worked out regulations on the functioning of groups with extended hours but, at the request of the minister of education, these regulations were repealed,” stated Andrei Pavaloi.

The official also said that there are ambiguities in the order issued by the minister. “In this order, with the regulations attached, nothing is said about socially disadvantaged families. 60-70% of the document is copied from the one we drafted. The Ministry removed the part with the exemption of students from socially vulnerable families. The order sets fees for all parents. The amount starts from 600-800 lei and reaches 900 lei for three hours, while for six hours, according to the order, the fee can be 1,600 lei,” said Andrei Pavaloi. 

The Chisinau City Hall noted that about 21,000 fist-fourth graders from general education institutions of the municipality of Chisinau continue to attend extracurricular activities after the main classes.

In January, officials of the General Division of Education, Youth and Sports of the Chisinau Municipal Council announced fixed fees for the groups with extended hours in the schools of Chisinau. The fees were 360 lei per month for the program extended by three hours and 690 lei for the one extended by six hours. A week ago, the Ministry of Education and Research issued an order regulating the activity of school groups with extended hours.