Sources of Funding

Sources of Funding

Rumble (2006, pages 87-91) outlines a variety of mechanisms for funding open and distance learning (ODL) programmes, including:

• government grants and subsidies,
• student fees or other user charges,
• community contributions (often in kind),
• sales of materials and other services,
• donations from private-sector bodies,
• grants from non-governmental organisations,
• grants from international funding agencies.

In addition, soft loans (with rates of interest below commercial rates) may be available from international development banks, though these are normally restricted to capital investment in buildings or equipment. Alternatively, if a particular programme or project is economically viable, it may be possible for an ODL institution to obtain a loan from a commercial bank.

Many ODL institutions obtain their funding from a variety of sources and the balance between them varies widely from institution to institution. Table 10a below illustrates the different sources of funding that have been accessed to support ten teacher-training projects:

TABLE 10a Sources of Funding for Teacher-Training Projects

	Sources of funding
	Government	Student Fees	Community	Private sector and NGOs	Funding agency
Brazil: Television based in-service programme			Yes	Yes	Yes
Burkina Faso: Specialist project for head teachers					Yes
Chile: In-service programme on computer education		Yes
China: Television Teachers Training College	Yes	Yes	Yes
India: Open University programme on guidance	Yes	Yes
Mongolia: Reorienting primary teachers to new approaches	Yes				Yes
Nigeria: National Teachers' Institute initial training programme	Yes	Yes
South Africa: OLSET radio project for schools and teachers					Yes
South Africa: University degree programme	Yes	Yes
United Kingdom: Open University postgraduate certificate in education	Yes

Source: Perraton & Lentell 2004, page 104.