Commissioner for the Protection of Equality, Brankica Janković, sent the Government of Serbia and the Ministry of Education a recommendation to take all the necessary measures on time to allocate funds from the budget for the distribution of free textbooks in the territory of all local self-government units for the next school year. Thus, students from all over Serbia would be on par with their peers from Belgrade and other cities who provided free textbooks for all primary and secondary school students this school year.

Although the distribution of free textbooks and textbook sets is financed from the budget of local governments, it should be borne in mind that a large number of cities and economically less developed municipalities have budgets below the national average, which is why they are unable to cover the entire cost of textbooks for all students. The Commissioner also points to the difficult position of families in underdeveloped local self-government units, poor and devastated areas, where parents find it more difficult to find employment or have significantly lower incomes than, for example, in Belgrade, and the expenses for the purchase of textbooks are thus a real challenge for the family budget.

Free textbooks should not be the privilege of children living in the capital, but all children in Serbia should have this right. Investing in youth education is extremely important for the further economic and overall development of society, Janković points out, and reminds that one of the Government’s strategic designations is to provide quality education for all, with a special commitment to ensuring equal opportunities for all children.