Its objective is good, for equitable access to education. Therefore, since 2005 the government has channeled Dana BOS.
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Its objective is good, for equitable access to education. Therefore, since 2005 the government has channeled school operational assistance funds (Dana BOS).
With the provision of Dana BOS, there is no longer any reason for parents not to send their children aged 7-15 years to go to school due to financial constraints because education costs are fully borne by the government. Parents simply need think about the cost of their children\'s personal needs, such as school uniforms, stationery and shoes.
The World Bank has praised Dana BOS provision because it gives access to the community, especially low-income people, to basic education. The World Bank measured its success by, among other things, the rise in junior high school attendance, which had been stagnant for years but rose significantly after assistance funds were given.
Junior high school attendance, for example, which reached 85.2 percent in 2005, increased to 88.6 percent in 2006 and continued to rise every year until it reached 98.11 percent in 2009.
Dana BOS allocation directly benefits the public. No fewer than 44 million elementary and junior high school students as well as madrasah ibtidaiyah and madrasah tsanawiyah students benefit from Dana BOS provision.
As its benefits can be felt, Dana BOS has increased every year from initially Rp 5.1 trillion in 2005 to Rp 16 trillion in 2009. Even since 2012, Dana BOS has also been allocated for senior high school (SMA), vocational school (SMK) and madrasah aliyah students. Fund allocation jumped to Rp 45.1 trillion in 2017.
Unfortunately, as disclosed by this newspaper yesterday, the assistance fund allocation to schools is now stagnating, especially after the Constitutional Court this year decided to handover the management of SMA and SMK to provincial administrations. Because its distribution has stagnated, quite a few schools have failed to pay their electricity and water bills as well as allowances for contract teachers. Many school principals have also been forced to borrow money to buy stationery.
We deplore the delays in the distribution of assistance funds because in reality it has greatly affected the teaching and learning process of millions of students.
There is a difference in reference between the Home Ministry and Education and Culture Ministry so that assistance funds cannot be directly channeled to school accounts, but through the provincial administration. Payments are no longer made every three months, but every six months.
This change is caused by delays in the distribution of assistance funds, which harms schools. We hope the two government institutions will sit down together to find a solution so that assistance funds distribution is no longer late. Education should never be sacrificed.