The Regional Secretary for Education and Culture said today that the textbook loan programme in force in the Azores, whose amount "is not even subtracted from the reimbursement allocated under the School Welfare Scheme, is a powerful tools to ensure equality of opportunities."

"Only the non-beneficiaries of Social Welfare, that is, those who least need are required to pay a deposit of 20 percent, which is simply a refund guarantee of textbooks in conditions to be reused upon return of the amount of collateral," said Avelino Meneses at the Legislative Assembly.

Avelino Meneses added that "the loan scheme compared is more educational because it gives students the sense of social and individual responsibility. In turn, they will have the opportunity to learn the advantages of saving and reusing resources, which will also benefit the environment."

In the school year 2015/2016, the textbook loan programme covers 17,327 School Welfare beneficiaries and 1,353 non-beneficiaries, from the 3rd to the 10th form.

Elementary school students (1st and 2nd form) will be allocated the textbooks without the obligation to return them.

According to the Regional Secretary for Education and Culture, the loan of textbooks will comprise all levels of education within two years, reaching "its full potential."

Avelino Meneses recalled that the Azorean legislation on the free allocation of textbooks has been in force since mid 2012. The government official assured that "the Government has the conditions to respond to the needs" of families, rejecting the argument that "the budgets of families are burdened" due to the acquisition of textbooks.