$40 million has been set aside for back-to-school support, as announced by Finance Minister Professor Biman Prasad during the presentation of the 2024-2025 National Budget in Parliament last week. This funding intends to help families with a household income of less than $50,000 in preparation for the upcoming school year.
Prof Prasad mentioned that this support commenced when his party took office and expanded in subsequent budgets. Over both rounds of the budget, it has helped more than 200,000 students.
The finance minister believes this initiative has been highly successful, especially for families with children in early childhood care and education all the way up through Year 13. The goal is to make sure that students are fully prepared when they start school.
Retailers have reported that parents are using the designated $200 per child to purchase necessary supplies such as school uniforms, bags, stationery, shoes, lunch boxes, among other essential items.