Professor Nikitenko urges municipalities to redirect funds to support teachers

Municipalities should take a closer look at their budget priorities and consider whether some of their available funds could go toward supporting teachers. This was said on 5 November by Agris Nikitenko, a professor at Riga Technical University, on the TV24 programme "Nacionālo interešu klubs" (National Interests Club). The topic is relevant amid ongoing discussion in Latvia about how to fund the education system.

The professor acknowledged that the current situation with education funding cannot be judged in simple terms and that it is what it is. In his view, if the ministry at national level cannot provide the necessary money, attention should also turn to the resources held by local governments.

The road-paving example

Nikitenko said municipalities have funds that could also be used for education needs. He suggested reviewing what the money is being spent on and whether part of it could be redirected to teacher support. As an example, he mentioned paving roads to summer houses. "Instead of asphalting some roads to your own summer house, why not invest in teachers?" the professor asked rhetorically.

On young people leaving

He also disagreed with the assumption that young people who get their education in a particular municipality inevitably leave and never return. According to Nikitenko, this depends on the profession chosen and on a person's future life plans, so it cannot be claimed that in every rural parish young people simply leave and vanish.