The Ra Provincial Council has plans to financially support the education of children in the province.
Council deputy chairperson Mrs Nanise Kasami Nugusuca said they were also working on ways to reduce the number of school dropouts.
Mrs Nugusuca said parents and children were encouraged to prioritise education because it was the answer to many of the social and economic problems of the country.
“We are encouraging the students who drop out from schools. We are trying our best to have a scholarship fund for them so that we can assist the parents facing all the difficulty in trying to get the school fees and all,” Mrs Nugusuca said.
“We are trying to have some fundraising in the communities to help the children to further their education.”
Mrs Nugusuca also commended the Government for the establishment of the Fiji National University Rakiraki Centre.
Students will not need to go to other towns or cities for further education now because they now have a tertiary education centre on their door step.
“Bringing the FNU centre to us is a privilege. When I look at the secondary schools, they have gone up to Form 7. After Form 7, students face accommodation and other financial problems when they go to Suva or Lautoka. This problem will be solved now since we have a university centre in our own province,” Mrs Nugusuca added.
She is also encouraging parents to save for their children’s further education.
“Most of the time when I speak to my people, I emphasise on education. They have to save money and put education as number one priority in their family. Each child at least from a family should go up to university level,” Mrs Nagusuca said.
“Ra Province will also benefit when our students are highly qualified and have a better job.”
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