A number of new secondary schools will be constructed before 2025 as the government pushes to achieve full secondary education, Education Minister Priya Manickchand said on Monday.
She explained that this is important because inadequate accommodation in schools contributes to school dropouts.
As such, there is a massive push to get children back into schools while ensuring that they are comfortably accommodated and can access a sound education regardless of the school they attend.
New secondary schools are expected in Regions Three, Four, Six, Seven, Eight and Nine.
Notable projects include the construction of two new secondary schools in Region Three, a new secondary school in the Turkeyen/ Cummings Lodge area in Georgetown and the construction of new secondary schools with dorms at Orealla, the Upper Mazaruni area and in communities in Regions Eight and Nine.
Meanwhile, in all of the regions, there are plans to rehabilitate buildings or extend the existing facilities. Already, in Georgetown, extensions to the East Ruimveldt and St. Winifride’s secondary schools have been greenlighted.
Ongoing projects, such as the schools at Prospect, Yarrowkabra and Good Hope, all in Region Four, should be completed soon as well. Manickchand also reminded reporters that schools destroyed by fire are being rebuilt.
With these new and expanded schools all across the country, the Education Minister believes that the country will be able to achieve universal secondary education by 2025; that is, all secondary school aged children should be able to access schools and have all the necessary resources to support their learning.