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Malta’s Stipend System Costs €25 Million, But We Still Have Highest Rate Of School Leavers: Should The Funds Be Used Elsewhere?

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Malta is spending over €25 million per year on its student stipend system, despite the country’s high rate of early school leavers and questionable academic performance.

While most students around the world are forced to pay ever-increasing tuition fees, Malta is one of the few countries to not only provide education for free but even pay students to attend higher education and university.

Now, parliamentary figures tabled by Education Minister Evarist Bartolo have revealed the €25 million per year spent on the  €88.44 monthly stipends for Malta’s students in post-secondary education and beyond.

The number, it should be noted, does not take into account the maintenance grant provided to every student at the start of the year.

Despite the massive outlay per year on both the stipends and a free education system, Malta still has one of the highest rate of early school leavers in the EU, while just 34% of all people receive tertiary education.

Meanwhile, less than half (44.6%) of all students who sat for their O-level made it to sixth form.

The issue was even recently flagged by Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, who has even suggested raising the compulsory age for education from 16 to either 17 or 18.

Under the Labour government, which had first introduced stipends under Dom Mintoff’s tenure, the fund has been extended to repeating students. At present, around 935 repeating students benefit, costing the state around €510,000 annually.

While stipends are available to everyone, regardless of their family’s or personal income, there are some exceptions. Students, whether they are mature or otherwise, who work more than 20 hours a week, forfeit their right to a stipend, even if it is during holidays.

This has drawn some criticism, with people arguing that the limit negatively affects students from lower-income families who would depend on both salaries throughout their education.

Early-school leavers, for example, may look at the minimum national wage of €166.22 per week as a greater value than the €88.44 monthly income in the short-term, negating any incentive to continue studying.

The idea behind a stipend and free education is clear. By providing young adults with equal accessibility and incentive, the government hopes to improve Malta’s workforce, academic performance, and early school-leaving rates.

However, with so much money only yielding slow improvement, maybe questions must be asked whether the funds would be better served elsewhere?

READ NEXT: Malta’s Education Ministry Allays Teachers’ Inspection Concerns: We Want To Help You, Not Catch You Out

Julian is the former editor of Lovin Malta and has a particular interest in politics, the environment, social issues, and human interest stories.

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