UAE | Education
Some bus fares in Dubai have tripled
It's that time of the year again when parents are hit hard by the reality of increased academic expenses, be it school supplies, uniforms or bus transportation.
- By Siham Al Najami And Anjana Sankar, Staff Reporters
- Published: 23:42 August 21, 2008
- Shopping for new school bags.
- Image Credit: Gulf News Archive
Dubai: It's that time of the year again when parents are hit hard by the reality of increased academic expenses, be it school supplies, uniforms or bus transportation.
However, not unlike last year, parents will be faced with even bigger price increases in all aspects of their children's education.
Gulf News observations revealed a more than 20 per cent general increase in uniform prices, a 25 per cent increase in stationery and staggering price rises in the cost of bus services.
The approximate increase in school uniforms has reached up to 20 per cent in almost all schools whereas bus transportation prices vary between schools and education companies.
Some of the 26 schools belonging to Global Education Management Systems (GEMS) have more than doubled and tripled their uniform prices while some Asian schools have increased their bus prices between 10 and 15 per cent. Some private Arabic schools have had around a 25 per cent increase since last year.
International schools on average had a 7 to 20 per cent increase in their uniform prices. Bus services in some international schools have more than doubled since last year.
Arabic private schools offer their uniforms in two set packages, the cost of which ranges between Dh240 to Dh350 while their transportation prices range between Dh1,500 to Dh2,800, an increase of 40 to 50 per cent since last year.
The transportation cost for most Asian schools ranges from Dh700 to Dh1,800. For other Asian and international schools it varies from Dh270 to Dh800 per month depending on the school and the route.
Low cost Asian schools had around a 10 to 13 per cent increase in bus transportation, ranging between Dh550 and Dh1,200.
An Arabic school principal attributed the increase in bus transportation prices to the increase in the price of diesel.
GEMS said it had no option but to start outsourcing their bus services to counter rising costs.
Action heroes and cartoon characters are once again dominating the back-to-school market. But these products do come at a price that hurts budget shoppers.
The price of stationery items including notebooks, pencils, erasers, pencil boxes has risen by 20 to 25 per cent since last year.
The first day at school. New bags, water bottles, stationery, crisp books, starched uniforms and in some cases new broomsticks and pet owls ... well, if you were off to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Even Harry Potter had to shop for supplies in Diagon Alley. Most parents would probably like to yell the spell "Reducio!" on the rising cost of supplies, but in reality there seems to be nothing they can do. Gulf News journalists speak to parents to get an idea of the impact that increasing expenses are having on the budgets for their children's schooling.
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