Since 2020, the PPP/C Government has invested over $600 billion to transform Guyana’s education sector, reflecting a strategic approach aimed at improving access for every child.
Considerable investments have been made in expanding access to early childhood, primary and secondary education through the construction, rehabilitation and expansion of educational facilities.
Speaking at the commissioning of Non Pariel Nursery School along the East Coast corridor last Friday, Minister of Education Priya Manickchand disclosed that 54 new nursery schools have been built countrywide over the past four and a half years.
These nursery schools include Little Achievers, Parabara, Kwakwani, Providence, Baitoon, La Bagatelle, Kaicumbay, Katu’ur, and St Gabriel’s.
Thirteen nurseries were reconstructed and 39 were extended.
With the construction of 24 new primary schools, access to education has also improved.
Students from Kokshebai, Arthurville, Zeelugt, and Onderneeming primaries now have comfortable learning environments equipped with modern amenities to support their educational endeavours.
Twenty-one new primary facilities have been rebuilt, while 36 underwent extension works.
A loan totalling US$90 million from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) is also supporting the construction of six new primary schools and the upgrade of 19 existing ones in the hinterland regions.
Minister Manickchand stated that no secondary school was built between 2015 and 2020.
“We have built or are building 40 new secondary schools in Guyana,” the education minister said.
In the hinterland regions alone, the government has built 79 new schools, providing enhanced access to students in remote villages.
New Brickdam Secondary, Christ Church Secondary, and St George’s School of Sciences were recently commissioned, providing better learning spaces for students.
Overcrowding has been significantly reduced at several schools with the addition of new blocks at these facilities.
Hundreds of students now have access to spacious classrooms at East Ruimveldt Secondary, The Bishops’ High, Queen’s College, St Rose’s High, St Stanislaus, St Winefride’s Secondary.
In Georgetown alone, Campbellville Secondary, St Rose’s High, St Stanislaus, and Queen’s College are undergoing extension works to accommodate the schools’ growing populations. A secondary school at Houston is also being rebuilt.
Secondary schools are currently being constructed at Monkey Mountain, Kwebanna, Hosororo, Matthew’s Ridge, Orealla, Jawalla, Phillipai, Kopinang, Karasabai, Tabatinga, Nappi, Massara, Tuschen, Nismes, Vreed-en-Hoop, and Waramuri.
Beyond the physical infrastructure, a record number of teachers are being trained to deliver quality education to the nation’s children.
Since taking office in August 2020, the government has made undeniable advancements in revamping the education sector to provide universal access to high-quality education for all of the nation’s children, regardless of their geographic location.
