Shania Shayal Prasad 
Incomplete application forms have been identified as a key reason for delays in back-to-school assistance payments.
Education Minister Aseri Radrodro says parents and guardians were given seven weeks to complete and submit forms at schools, with the deadline closing on December 12th last year.
He made the comments while responding to concerns raised about some parents not receiving the assistance to date.
The Minister says some forms were not filled correctly.
“Some were not filled with proper details of a student, family’s number, names, and mobile phone. And then, once we fill those forms, we send them to the Ministry of Finance.”
Radrodro states that once the Ministry of Finance reviews the submissions, any incomplete or incorrect details are sent back to the Ministry of Education for further verification.
“Once we complete the process, we send it back to the Ministry of Finance, which will make the payment, not the Ministry of Education.”
Minister for Finance Esrom Immanuel confirms that pending payments are expected to be cleared by the end of February.
Stream the best of Fiji on VITI+. Anytime. Anywhere.
