Russia to spend 4bn dollars on regional schools

Moscow: Russia will allocate 120 billion rubles ($4 billion) for the
modernization of regional schools over the next two school years,
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has said.

"We plan to allocate 60 billion rubles ($2 billion) from the federal
budget in each of the next two academic school years. The federal fund
will be spent to upgrade equipment in sports halls, school canteens,
as well to resolve problems of ungraded rural schools and
training...for teachers," Putin said at meeting of the ruling United
Russia party in Volgograd.

Shutdown of several rural schools is now being urgently discussed in Russia.

"Our territory is vast, and it's hard to argue that when a school is
being closed down residential areas die," Putin said, and added that
it was necessary to preserve schools in every residential area
wherever possible.

The prime minister, however, said that in small schools it was
difficult to maintain the education at a high level.

"In schools with two, three, four, five, seven, 10 teachers it is
impossible to maintain everything on a qualitative level both in math
and in physical culture."

"We propose that good educational centres are set up with strong
branches around them, to reduce expenditure on school maintenance,"
Putin said. IANS