Charging of levies should not be a precondition or criterion for the enrolment of a student into a school.
That is the message from the Minister for Education Aseri Radrodro when questioned by fijivillage News on the levies that may be charged by a school following the passing of the Education Bill 2025 in Parliament.
He says currently, schools are charging levies, but this has to be approved by the Permanent Secretary for Education.
He says this will also ensure schools are held accountable to the Education Ministry and transparency in terms of where the money is used.
According to the new Education law, a government school and government aided school may charge a levy to the students enrolled at the schools for the development or improvement of the school’s infrastructure; the maintenance of the school; the purchase of books and other supplies that are likely to improve the quality of the education provided by the school or enrich the learning experiences of the students; the purchase of equipment that is likely to improve the quality of the education provided by the school or enrich the learning experiences of the students; the funding of educational excursions and extracurricular activities that are likely to improve the quality of the education provided by the school or enrich the learning experiences of the students; and any other purpose authorised by the Permanent Secretary.
It says a government school and a government-aided school must apply to the Permanent Secretary in the prescribed manner and form for approval of the amount of levy to be charged.
The Permanent Secretary must ensure that the amount of levy to be charged is reasonable and equitable, and not excessive or burdensome to any parent.
