The fleet of school buses in the Vitebsk region will be replenished with 30 vehicles in the new academic year.

August 21, Vitebsk /Alena Tikhonova - BELTA/. The school bus fleet in the Vitebsk region will be replenished with 30 new vehicles for the new academic year. Ivan Shchurok, Head of the Education Department of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee, informed a BELTA correspondent about this.

To organise the transportation of children to educational institutions, 20 buses will be purchased using budget funds (Br5.6 billion), bringing the total number of school buses in the region to 194. The Development Bank of Belarus plans to finance the purchase of another 10 buses from the Minsk Automobile Plant. As Ivan Shchurok explained, 10,613 people will need to be transported to educational and upbringing institutions in the new academic year. Of these, 7,752 people (73%) will be transported to educational institutions by school buses, 2,662 (25%) will use regular bus services, and 166 people (1.6%) will be transported to schools and kindergartens by vehicles from agricultural organisations.

The Head of the Education Department noted that due to a decrease in the number of schoolchildren (119,000 studied in 2010, 113,000 in 2011, and 109,000 in 2012), district executive committees have decided to close 30 schools and reorganise 44. "The optimisation of the region's school network was carried out considering all pros and cons. The fate of each school was considered individually. That is why 144 general secondary education institutions with fewer than 50 students will continue to operate in the region in the new academic year," said Ivan Shchurok.

He also emphasised that new institutions are under construction in the region: a basic school is being built in the village of Litousovo, Senno District, and a primary school-kindergarten will soon open in Novopolotsk.

In the new academic year, 108,211 students will be educated in general secondary education institutions in the Vitebsk region. 11,293 first-graders will start school (558 more than last year). Approximately 7,000 students will be admitted to the 10th grade. In the new academic year, 500 general secondary education institutions will operate in the region. -0-