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AyRojgar
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Mixed experienceA kindergarten proprietor in Khulna, in a Khulna Gazette report

Three years without a single fee, a school kept open on loans, and the homestead next

The school ran profitably and with a good name before the pandemic. After the long closures no fees came in for three years; he has borrowed to keep it open and says clearing the debt may mean selling the homestead.

This pre-cadet school at Gilatala in Khan Jahan Ali thana, Khulna, was doing well before the pandemic; in the proprietor's words, "the institution was running with a good name and profitably." After the long closures not a single fee was collected from students for three years, while the cost of keeping the school open carried on, so he has been borrowing. If it continues, he says, he will have to sell the family homestead to clear the debt. Several nearby kindergartens have already shut. Across Khulna city, district and upazilas, 756 kindergartens employed about 10,000 teachers and staff supporting 20,000 to 22,000 family members, many of whom now live on loans or by selling family property. A profitable institution can still be brought down by cash flow, and the debt ends up attached to the owner's personal property rather than to the business.

Lessons

  1. 1.A profitable school still fails on cash flow: once fees stop the owner borrows, and the debt attaches to personal assets, not the business
  2. 2.Closing early can cost less than borrowing against the homestead to keep a school breathing

Published with the person's permission, without revealing who they are.

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