MINSK, 8 September (BelTA) – The literacy rate in Belarus is one of the world’s highest and makes up 99.7% among adults and 99.8% among the youth, the Education Ministry of Belarus told BelTA. Belarus leads among the CIS countries in the adult literacy rate and has one of the world’s highest literacy rates among young people. Education is among the priorities of Belarus’ state policy, this area accounts for one fourth of the budget expenditure. In Belarus there are nearly 4,000 state-run schools, gymnasiums, lyceums, vocational colleges which provide the Belarusian people with general secondary education. The country has been recently focusing on overall higher education. According to the Education Ministry, the country’s decision to continue general compulsory education after the Soviet Union collapse contributed greatly to Belarus’ present educational level. The right to education in Belarus is guaranteed by the constitution. General basic education is compulsory and covers 100% of the children in the relevant age group. There are over 2 million students that attend schools, vocational colleges and universities, including 372,000 preschoolers, more than 950,000 school pupils, over 250,000 those studying in the vocational colleges and more than 430,000 university attendees. Belarus was quick to achieve the millennium development goals related to the universal education. Children in Belarus are provided with wide opportunities for all-round development including creativity and sports. Every second school student attends institutions of out-of-class activities. Everyone has a right to free higher education on a competitive basis. The state devotes close attention to mainstreaming students with special educational needs: nearly 60% of students with SEN study in mainstream schools. 8 September was proclaimed International Literacy Day by the 14th session of the UNESCO General Conference following a proposal of the World Congress of Education Ministers. БЕЛТА
Written by belta.by
