XN000022-1973-03-02 — Page 2

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Friday, March 2, 1973

CONTINUING RISE IN EXPENDITURE ON EDUCATION

The Government's spending on Hong Kong's expanding educational system

is estimated at $816 million in the next financial year beginning on April 1.

This is $63 million more than the present year's revised expenditure.

It is also $229 million more than the actual expenditure of over

$587 million on education during the year 1971-72.

of the $816 million education bill, grants, refunds and assistance

for various types of schools account for $506 million.

This represents an increase of $119 million on the approved estimate

for 1972-73 and of $191 million on actual expenditure in 1971-72.

The $506 million include annual grants, capital grants and refunds under

the Grant and Subsidy Codes for Anglo-Chinese primary schools, for schools

and classes providing special education, for secondary grammar schools, secondary

technical schools, pre-vocational schools and secondary modern schools.

Also included are grants to the English Schools Foundation, and approved

recurrent and capital assistance for private secondary schools and for

subsidies for miscellaneous educational activities.

The estimate of the amount required in 1973-74 for recurrent and

capital grants to the two Universities and to the Polytechnic, for student grants,

for the salaries and expenses of the Secretariat of the Universities and Polytechnic

Grants Committee, and for the expenses of the Committee itself is more than

$132 million.

This represents a decrease of over $13 million on the approved estimate

for 1972-73 and of more than $10 million on actual expenditure in 1971-72.

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