Parents Disappointed as Private schools raise fees amid COVID-19 challenges

By The Inspirer Writer.

As many families and parents are hit hard with COVID-19 challenges and grounded with little income to sustain their families’, parents are upset with the private school’s decision to raise fees. — The campus reports.

Such a painful decision on the parents’ side is taken by some schools without consulting them as the main partners. [See Kigali Today’s Video report on YouTube]: 

Emmanuel Kayitare, a parent, says some private schools are trying to cover the losses made during the closure of the schools and then raise the fees without looking at the parameters of finance something he calls ‘inconsiderate with the situations on the ground’.

“Shortly before the pandemic, the school where my kid attends added Rwf10,000 on the school fees and we didn’t care because at least someone could financially able to pay but we were surprised to find that even at such a difficult financial situation during COVID-19, the school recently added more Rwf25,000. They are upsetting and not considering the situation on the ground,”

Janvier Mukiza, a parent whose children studies at one of the private schools based in Kigali, says, he has lost his job at a certain government ministry and he is left with no money to support the families and therefore “raising school fees for my kids is like adding injury to the wound depending on the fact my financial matters are affected to the core,”

Speaking to The Campus, a private school owner who did not wish to disclose his names, said that the private schools are rising the school fees because they are not benefiting from any government COVID-19 related financial support and therefore they are forced to draw strategies that would bridge the financial gap at hand.

“There are too many changes and financial needs that have come with the COVID-19 that go along with preventive measures including tools being placed at schools; hand-sanitizers, devices used during screening, and many others that require a big budget,” he noted.

Despite the fall of unemployment in the country between February from 5.1 to 3.5 percent in May 2020, according to the official figures, there are still challenges of unemployment due to the COVID-19 pandemic in both private and public sectors meaning that percentage of parents have lost sources of income for either sustaining families or sending their kids to school.