THE Education Ministry and Peace Corps Guyana have signed a seven-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) which will see over 70 volunteers providing educational services to several hinterland communities for the first time.

The Peace Corps volunteers will be addressing educational needs in Regions One, Two, Three, Four, Six, Seven, Nine and 10, living with host families and working alongside teachers in primary and secondary schools.

The signing of the agreement marks the renewal of bilateral partnerships between Guyana and the organization, which dates back to 1966. From then to now, over 900 Peace Corps volunteers have served in the country.

At the ministry’s boardroom on Wednesday, Education Minister Nicolette Henry said the relationship between the Education Ministry and Peace Corps Guyana has been cordial. Both organisations have worked to achieve mutual goals and objectives.
She said the agreement will help to strengthen the capacity and capabilities of the country’s school systems; the mutual relationships between agencies and Education Ministry’s main goals.

“When we come together and we forge strong partnerships and collaborations only good things can happen; and in this instance our common goals and objectives are clearly mapped out in this document,” Henry said.

The minister added that with continued reinforcement of the ministry’s focal areas, the existing disparity of learning between students in the hinterland and coastal regions will eventually be reduced.

The new partnership will see the volunteers serving as Primary Literacy Promoters for grades One to Four, teaching children to read, enhancing the learning environments and supporting parents and guardians.

Meanwhile, secondary schoolchildren between ages 10 to 14 will be taught how to adopt lifeskills and healthy behaviours and will be exposed to youth camps and clubs.
At the same time, environmental volunteers will work in primary schools to co-deliver the national science curriculum, while focusing on learning through enquiry and collaboration with community members to establish wildlife clubs.

In addition, the Peace Corps volunteers will work to advance the ministry’s National Centre for Educational Resource Development (NCERD) pilot Literacy Project, Education and Sustainable Development Project and the Health and Family Life Education (HFLE) curriculum.

FRUITFUL CONSULTATIONS
These new additions arise as a result of a year-long reviewing and updating of the previous MoU through consultations with a variety of stakeholders to determine possible improvements.

When questioned about the absence of Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni) in the list of regions Peace Corps Guyana intends to target, Country Director Kury Cobham said that this is a result of the challenging infrastructure.

“It’s not that we don’t want to go there, it’s just our ability right now. The infrastructure for Region Eight has been a challenge for us to ensure that we’re able to provide the support for volunteers there… but we hope to do so in the future,” she said.
The Peace Corps has made arrangements to attend a session in October with representatives from the National Toshaos Council (NTC) to further discuss their ability to return to the region.

Making remarks, too, was the US ambassador to Guyana Perry Holloway, who stated that the new MoU comes at a pivotal time as Guyana seeks to strengthen its quality of education countrywide.

He also encouraged Guyanese youths, as oil approaches, to position themselves to meet the demands which will increase for educators as the government invests more in the development of schools.

“We’re here to stay, if we’re welcomed to stay, and I want to thank the ministry and her team, because without their efforts we could not do any of this,” he said.

Peace Corps currently has 40 volunteers in the country, while 37 more will be sworn in on August 15, 2018, following their 10-week training on the Essequibo Coast
The work of the volunteers is guided by a logical project framework which stipulates the rationale, goals, objectives and activities they will undertake over a period of time.
This year, along with the objectives of the Education Ministry, Peace Corps volunteers will assist the Ministry of Public Health and Ministry of the Presidency with projects in adolescent health and well-being; maternal and child health; environmental education; and natural resource protection.