KARUSI August 26th (ABP) – Parents of pupils are unsure on which foot to dance following soaring prices for school equipment as the start of the new school year approaches. They go in and out of shop to shop without finding any school items and are surprised at the rising prices of school materials.
A notebook of one hundred sheets went from 1300 BIF last year to 1800 to 2000 BIF depending on the quality, that of 60 sheets went from 800 BIF last year to 1300-1500 BIF depending on the quality.
Khaki uniforms like and other uniforms of different colors for private schools rose from 5,000 to 6,000 BIF depending on age, as did satchels, while slippers rose from 3,000 to 6,000 depending on quality.
A Bic brand pen went from 500 to 700 BIF, the others from 350 to 500 BIF and the math boxes from 1000 BIF to 1300 BIF. Those prices are difficult to afford, according to the parents met at the Karusi market by the ABP. They ask for government intervention to set bearable prices, otherwise there will be many cases of abandonment, they say.
Pupils who will have to travel to boarding schools will find it difficult to afford transport costs which have tripled due to the lack of fuel.