Modular myth

In September, President Ilham Aliyev said that this year 19 schools have been built and thoroughly repaired in Baku: "We can say that the majority of schools in Baku are already in good condition. There are still schools in need of repair, we will repair them in the coming years. This year, more than 200 schools were built and repaired in our country. In remote or small villages, 137 modular schools were built. Schools in these villages were in disrepair. I hope that next year the program will also end the demolition of emergency schools and the construction of new schools in their place," the president said.

Compared to the current year, the draft state budget for 2019 increased by 230.6 million manats and reached 2,274.6 million. However, the project does not indicate how much of these funds will be spent on the construction and repair of educational institutions. However, during the year it was possible to meet about a dozen presidential orders on the allocation to the Ministry of Education of various amounts of money within 4-5 million for the construction of modular schools in the regions of the country.

Thus, 300-350 thousand have been allocated for the construction of each school. Funds are allocated, the work seems to be going, but for some reason the hands of officials do not reach some schools. In the village of Gumukh, the town of Sheki, there is a secondary school, looking at which school-wagon for displaced people in the Barda region seems to be modernized. Old peeling doors, walls, a sloping teacher's desk and six desks, on which you even scare to sit down, and even a blackboard and an old geographical map - that's the whole classroom setting.

On March 9, 2018, President Ilham Aliyev signed a decree on measures to develop the educational infrastructure in Gakh, Gabala, Oguz and Sheki regions. According to the order, 5,056,000 manat was allocated to the Ministry of Education for the construction in these areas of 15 schools of modular type, designed for 956 students. Eight months have passed since the signing of the order, the students of the village of Gumukh continue to go to an unsuitable school for instruction.

It should be noted that modular type schools are easily assembled on the ground with any terrain within one month. Simple calculations give the right to argue that for the specified time in the village it was possible to build already eight modular schools. However, the facts speak for themselves. The dilapidated school in Gumukh remains the only focus of education for small villagers.

Our numerous attempts to contact the Ministry of Education were futile.