An additional €8.9 million to be invested in the acquisition and development of educational materials with the support of European Union (EU) funds
An additional €8.9 million will be invested in the acquisition of educational materials for general education, as well as for vocationally oriented education in sports, arts, music, and dance, and for the development of educational materials, with the support of European Union (EU) funds. This is stipulated in the amendments to the regulations prepared by the Ministry of Education and Science (MoES), which were approved at today’s Cabinet meeting on 17 June.
The additional funding of €8.9 million for educational materials is intended for the purchase of learning literature (books and workbooks) for general education content, educational materials for vocationally oriented education in sports, arts, music, and dance, as well as for the development of educational resources, with priority given to materials for special education needs and advanced secondary school courses.
The approved amendments also foresee an expansion of the range of cooperation partners. In addition to municipalities and state vocational education institutions, the provision of educational materials will be extended to other state and private education institutions. EU fund support for educational materials is planned for all education institutions, regardless of their founder, provided they implement specific education programmes (excluding distance education) – preschool programmes for children aged five and up until the start of basic education, general basic education programmes, general secondary education programmes, special education programmes, vocational education programmes that include general education content, and vocationally oriented education programmes. The amendments also specify that funding for educational materials will be allocated based on the number of students as of September 1st of the previous academic year (according to VIIS data).
In 2025, an additional €5.5 million will be available for educational materials, and in 2026 – an additional €3.4 million.
This additional funding is necessary because the annual state budget earmarked grants for the purchase of educational materials are insufficient to ensure a high-quality learning process. The shortfall in funding is currently covered by the institution’s founder, within the limits of their own budget, which creates inequality in the provision of quality education.
The additional funding for the acquisition and development of educational materials is being provided by reallocating resources from EU fund programmes, a solution that has been agreed upon in discussions with social partners – the Latvian Trade Union of Education and Science Employees, the Latvian Association of Local and Regional Governments, the Employers’ Confederation of Latvia, and others.
The Cabinet regulation amendments “Amendments to the Cabinet of Ministers Regulation No. 358 of 11 June 2024 ‘Implementation Rules for the EU Cohesion Policy Programme 2021–2027 Specific Objective 4.2.2 “To improve the quality, inclusiveness, efficiency, and labour market relevance of education and training systems, including through the validation of non-formal and informal learning, to support the acquisition of key competences, including entrepreneurial and digital skills, and to promote the implementation of dual education and apprenticeships,” Measure 4.2.2.3 “Improvement of the quality of the learning process through the development of a professional support system for teachers, activities for student excellence, and the development of methodological support materials for teachers”’” are available on the website of the Cabinet of Ministers.
