SCHOOL FEES

School is compulsory for children between the ages of six and 14 years. The government introduced free primary education in the year 2000. Therefore, enrolment at primary level is high, at around 90% of pupils.

Having said that households frequently face a wide range of user fees for publicly provided primary education, including textbook fees, compulsory uniforms, PTA dues, and various special fees such as exam fees and community contributions to district education boards.

These costs prove too much for the poorest families and children have to leave school early. Tuition and fees at the secondary school level are indeed very high and unfortunately remain unaffordable for many families.

PTAs

Parents/Teachers Associations (PTAs) play a significant role in financing education in both the public and the private schools. In addition to the school fees, PTAs also levy parents a yearly amount for specific PTA projects in each school

A report indicates that children are excluded or punished in public and private schools for not having paid their PTA levy, which amounts to 5000 FCFA per child. Incidents have occurred where children’s annual report cards have being withheld for non-payment of these fees.

Most of these fees are often fixed arbitrarily by head teachers or PTA presidents and imposed on all pupils. Whereas, the presidential decree No 2001/041 of February 19, 2001, provides that PTA fees are paid on a voluntary basis and pupils of public primary schools are exempted from the payment of any fixed annual dues.

However the report further revealed that 74 per cent of homes still consider PTA fees as compulsory and that the payment of extra fees for the construction of classes, revision classes and other activities are made compulsory by school heads.

Private Institutions

Cameroon boasts a number of private and international schools. Tuition tends to be expensive based on local standards, but offers high standards of learning, boast smaller class sizes, first-rate facilities, and extracurricular.

To give you a rough idea of costs, below is the 2011 – 12 annual tuition rates for the American School of Yaounde, a boarding and day co-educational educational institution offering a college preparatory program from nursery through grade 12 for English-speaking students.(About 95% of the School’s income derives from tuition.) 

 PK3: $5,060; PK4: $6,530; kdg.: $11,650; grades 1-5: $14,710; grades 6-8: $15,570; grades 9-10: $16,170;.and grades 11-12: $16,500.

 ESL supplement: $1,500, a capital levy fee for all new students is: $3,000. Transportation by school bus (optional) is $1,500. There is a one-time registration fee of $500, per child.

 Annual lunch fees (optional) are: PK 3/4: CFA 300,000; kdg.-grade 5: CFA 400,000; grades 6-12: CFA 500,000.

 Boarding facilities for children in grades 6-12: $12,000. (All fees are quoted in U.S. dollars, with some in CFA).