Bandung to provide free education

As of 2009, school tuition for elementary and secondary students in Bandung will be free of charge, a regional education official said Tuesday.

Bandung education agency head, Oji Mahroji, said the initiative was line with the 2008 governmental decree on compulsory elementary education.

Oji said the proposal would work as long as the 20 percent education budget was disbursed, which would be around Rp 340 billion (US$ 36.5 million).

Bandung has only allocated 9 percent, or Rp 30 billion, of its budget to education. The West Java city, however, is aiming to provide free education up until junior high to all of its residents.

"With a budget allocation as hefty as 20 percent, it would technically be possible to provide free schooling for elementary school and junior high school students, infrastructure development, and the construction of new high schools and vocational institutions," Oji said. (amr)