Kindergarten Places in Short Supply
Pre-school facilities in Kyrgyzstan are overcrowded, with long waiting lists, Jyldyz Joroeva reports.
Kindergarten Places in Short Supply
Pre-school facilities in Kyrgyzstan are overcrowded, with long waiting lists, Jyldyz Joroeva reports.
In the capital Bishkek, there are 17,000 children in kindergartens whose maximum capacity should be 13,000.
“The problem really is fairly serious,” said Gulmira Khudaiberdieva, head of the city education department. “It is fundamentally that we don’t have enough sites. If we had the sites, our leadership would probably look for ways of funding staff wages, food and maintenance for these children.”
Parents who do not get a place for their child often leave them with relatives or neighbours when they go out to work, or – if they can afford it – get them into a private kindergarten.
The state also provides some kindergartens that target single mothers and other vulnerable groups.
However, one mother told IWPR how she applied for a place for her child but was told she would have to wait three or four years – which somewhat defeats the purpose.
“The problem really is fairly serious,” said Gulmira Khudaiberdieva, head of the city education department. “It is fundamentally that we don’t have enough sites. If we had the sites, our leadership would probably look for ways of funding staff wages, food and maintenance for these children.”
Parents who do not get a place for their child often leave them with relatives or neighbours when they go out to work, or – if they can afford it – get them into a private kindergarten.
The state also provides some kindergartens that target single mothers and other vulnerable groups.
However, one mother told IWPR how she applied for a place for her child but was told she would have to wait three or four years – which somewhat defeats the purpose.
