Education budget ‘not at risk’ – Medina

Santo Domingo.- Theassignment of 4% of GDP to education in the 2013 budget will be applied as planned, President Danilo Medina confirmed on Wednesday.

In a interview broadcast by a localTV channel, the Dominican president described the step, established inthe Constitution but never implemented up till now, as the current Dominican government’s most important investment.

Although in the few last years primary level attendance in schools has reached 99%, poverty is removing children from the classrooms, said Medina.

Also, he added, students will have breakfast and food, and will not beforced to leave school to work because of lack of food. Medinaemphasized that the resources spent on education were not at risk, despite the country’s economicdifficulties.

He stated that most of the state institutions have budgetary contributionsequal or lower than the previous year’s allocations.

The 2013 budget totals RD$530.84 billion,equivalent to a little more than US$12.76 billion at current exchange rates.

Pre-university education will receive RD$99.62 billion,equivalent to US$2.394 billion.