IPA President Gökce shares: Education expenses double TURKSTAT inflation

Istanbul Planning Agency (IPA) President Buğra Gökce stated, "Today in Turkey, one in every 5 children faces deep poverty issues and cannot access sufficient and nutritious food."

Gökce shared economic data regarding the new academic year, which will begin on September 9, via the social media platform X.

Reminding that annual inflation was 51.9 percent in August according to TURKSTAT data, Gökce drew attention to the fact that education expenses have shown a 120 percent increase.

Gökce said, "Students' basic stationery expenses increased by 71.9 percent, clothing expenses for school by 62.5 percent, and the cost of starting school by 64.9 percent."

The full text of Gökce's statement is as follows:

"As the academic year begins, problems in the education system continue to worsen. 1 in every 5 schools is a private school. According to Ministry of National Education (MEB) formal education statistics, there are 17.5 million students in formal education in Turkey. Out of a total of 75 thousand 19 educational institutions, the number of state-owned institutions is 60 thousand 734, while the number of private schools is 14 thousand 281. The ratio of private schools to all schools/institutions has reached 19 percent for the first time in our history. In other words, market dynamics have become dominant in education. 442 thousand 643 children are out of the system. Out of 17 million 558 thousand 25 students registered in the compulsory formal education system in official and private schools in Turkey, 442 thousand 643 are outside the system. Although parents who do not send their children to school should be given administrative fines or a one-year prison sentence, this sanction is not effectively applied."

'ONE-THIRD OF STUDENTS ATTEND OPEN HIGH SCHOOLS'

The number of students in secondary education has more than doubled in the last 22 years, reaching 6 million 789 thousand 681 from 3 million 23 thousand 602, while the total number of students in open high schools alone has increased more than fourfold in the last 22 years, rising from 464 thousand 935 to 2 million 9 thousand 480. In other words, students attending open high schools currently make up one-third of the total number of students in secondary education.

CHILD LABOR PROBLEM

According to TURKSTAT data, while the labor force participation rate of children between the ages of 15-17 was 16.2 percent in 2020, this rate reached its peak in the last 10 years at 22.1 percent by 2023. While the number of child laborers is 853 thousand according to official data, experts state that this number exceeds 2 million when including those working informally. Information shared by the Health and Safety Labor Watch (İSİG) Assembly stated that 695 child laborers lost their lives while working between 2013 and 2024.

'1.5 MILLION CHILDREN GO TO SCHOOL HUNGRY'

Turkey ranks first among OECD countries in child poverty. The rapidly increasing impoverishment in recent times has first hit the most vulnerable children in Turkey. Today in Turkey, one in every 5 children faces deep poverty issues and cannot access sufficient and nutritious food.

While our country needs to invest in education more every day, investment has been consciously reduced. While the Ministry of National Education allocated 17 percent of the education budget to investment in 2002, this share fell to 9 percent in 2023."

?? The new academic year is starting: Education costs are breaking the backs of parents.

?? According to TURKSTAT data, while annual inflation was 51.9 percent in August, education expenses broke a record with a 120 percent increase.

?? According to @ipaistanbul data, students' basic… pic.twitter.com/wFQ01zsEil

— Dr. Buğra Gökce (@gokcebugra) September 8, 2024

News Source: 12punto