School prepration expenses 30% up as against last year 

ArmInfo.With September 1 approaching, many parents are rushing to finish preparing their  children for the new school year. However, the expenses of some parents interviewed by ArmInfo correspondent for preparing their children for school more than significantly exceed their income. 

According to the survey, the costs of preparing for school vary from  50,000 to 200,000 drams. The final amount depends on many factors:  the number of children in the family, the requirements of educational  institutions and the overall family budget. In some cases, the  difference in expenses is explained by the fact that parents prefer  to invest in quality clothing so as not to renew their wardrobe every  year. For example, a mother of two children participating in the  survey said that this year she spent about 50,000 drams on both  children, thanks to the remaining items from the previous year. At  the same time, last year her expenses for two children amounted to  about 100,000 drams with an income of 200,000 drams.

However, the situation may vary significantly depending on the school  the children attend. One parent noted that she spent more than  200,000 drams on preparing both children. This amount included not  only the cost of clothes and stationery - at least 40,000 drams per  child, but also additional costs for books and special notebooks and  dictionaries. As a result, the total cost of stationery and books per  child was about 70,000 drams, which is more than half of the parent's  budget for both children. Among respondents with a higher income, the  situation looks different. Thus, one parent shared that with a family  budget of about 600,000 drams, about 210,000 drams were spent on  preparing two children, 150,000 of which was on clothes and 60,000 on  stationery.

However, not all families are in a similar financial situation. The  survey was also conducted among families forcibly deported from  Artsakh. Thus, a single mother of four from Artsakh said that she  spends about 215,000 drams on the education of her three children. Of  this amount, 30,000 go on bags, 50,000 on stationery, and 110,000 on  clothes and shoes. At the same time, her only income is the  assistance that the government temporarily pays to forcibly deported  Artsakh residents - 250,000 drams for five people. 

A similar situation was noted with another parent from Artsakh. Due  to difficulties with employment, the family has practically no  permanent income. Thus, due to the assistance provided to Artsakh  refugees, the family budget is 300,000 drams, of which only 150,000  goes to rent an apartment and pay for utilities. And the costs of  preparing both children for school are over 180,000 drams, and this  is despite the fact that the family has no other income. Thus, the  expenses of this family exceed the income received.

At the same time, for some families, the costs of preparing children  for school may completely coincide with the income of one of the  parents. Thus, one of the parents surveyed reported that her expenses  for preparing one child this year amounted to 150,000 drams - 120,000  for clothes and 30,000 for stationery.  This amount, as the parent  noted, corresponds to her monthly income. Thus, preparing for school  today is becoming a real challenge for many families. In the context  of rising costs and limited income, parents need to find a balance  between the quality and price of goods in order to get their children  ready for the start of the school year. According to the most  conservative estimates, this year, preparing one child for school  exceeds the expenses of families in the previous school year by 30%.