Minister of Education, Sonia Parag and Minister within the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development Pauline Sukhai on Saturday visited several ongoing school projects in Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni), where they told contractors that deadlines and quality standards must be met in the execution of key projects.
The site visits were to schools and dormitories as the government pushes to expand access to secondary education in the hinterland.
At the Three Miles Dormitory, the existing structure is being renovated to house male students while a brand-new dormitory is being constructed for female students.
Parag and Sukhai then visited the Bartica Secondary School dormitory, which is about 70 percent complete and is undergoing major renovation and expansion. One completed building and a finished floor of another will be officially handed over on Wednesday.
Other projects are progressing steadily. However, the Karrau Secondary School has experienced setbacks due to challenges encountered sourcing wood for the structure. That issue has since been addressed, but the school will not be completed within the original timeline.
“So the solution is to examine carefully what are the challenges and what will be done to ensure the school is finished,” Sukhai said.
The ministers warned contractors that the projects are expected to be completed by respective deadlines which are October and December 2025, in time for the new school term.
Once finished, the dormitories will house hundreds of students from various communities across the region, significantly improving access to education for hinterland youths.
Sukhai told News Room that these projects represent a huge investment by the government to ensure every child in the interior has the opportunity to pursue secondary education.
“It’s a positive for the hinterland students whereby the environment which they have to study now will be much more improved, space capacity improved including the necessary needs for advancing secondary education,” she said.
She was firm that contractors must deliver on their commitments.
“We would like to see that all the contracts that we have awarded to contractors that they are done in a timely manner. If, for example, they are not going to be done in a timely manner, our government has been working to ensure that the remedial actions are taken so that we can house our children,” Sukhai added.
Parag echoed this call for accountability, noting that the site visits are meant to push contractors to stay on schedule.
“We are making sure that we are not giving too much leverage to be able to complete but have it complete in a timely manner and have the students move on,” she said.
“Because the idea is to have them (students) have the access.”
She further stressed the importance of quality. “Ensuring [that] the works are done properly” is a key part of the ministry’s oversight, Parag said, revealing that contractors are now required to submit weekly progress reports, including photographs and percentage updates on the status of works.
Across Guyana’s hinterland, primary education is already accessible, and these projects form part of the government’s broader effort to improve and expand secondary education.
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