…Region 10 REO says programme should not be underestimated

THE Public Education Transportation System (PETS) and the Public Education Nutrition System (PENS), benefitting thousands of students across Guyana, should not be underestimated and must be seen as a real game changer in the education sector.

This was the position taken by Regional Executive Officer (REO) of Region 10, Orrin Gordon, on Tuesday, at a press conference, while disclosing that the RDC has been expending and will continue to expend millions of dollars on these programmes. These programmes ensure that hundreds of children in Region 10, attend school regularly and punctually and are fed when they get there.

The first transportation under the PETS to benefit Region 10, was a boat that was donated by President David Granger in 2016. Today it is still being used to transport children from communities down the Demerara River as far as Gold Hill, to Linden. This was followed by donations of a boat for students at River’s View to attend school in Bartica, a boat for children to attend school in the Upper-Demerara and Upper-Berbice Rivers, as well as buses for students residing in Kwakwani and Coomacka.

Realising how impactful the programme was, the RDC came on board and purchased buses for children residing at Moblissa on the Linden Soesdyke Highway and for students residing in Christianburg, who are temporarily placed at St Aidens Primary. Only last year, the RDC expended $15M for another 30-seater bus to ply the Coomacka route.

The REO said that while these investments may seem minuscule to some people, they are actually real life-changing investments for those benefitting. The investment does not only stop at the purchasing of the transportation, but continuous support and maintenance, which sum up to millions. The RDC still has responsibility to fuel these transportations, to maintain them and to pay the salaries of the drivers and boat operators.

He averaged that for the buses, on a termly basis, about $6M is being expended, while about $1M is being expended on the boats. This, however, is nothing compared to what parents are saving in their pockets for not having to provide transportation. For Coomacka alone, Gordon, who is an economist, averaged that parents are saving about $3M a term. “Although it comes across as a small deal, it is a real big deal, that money it is saving parents $3M a term quite easily and that is something quite significant to keep in mind,” he said.

This cost should, at no time, be taken for granted, Gordon said, as the parents will now have a chance to filter it into some other aspect of home management or even community development.

In addition, the RDC is expending millions on the PENS through the hot meal programme, which is available at several schools across the region. Giving an anecdote, Gordon said he once watched some children paddle along the Berbice River to get to school, which is quite a few miles of paddling. When they got there, he reasoned they would be hungry and tired and therefore would not be in the frame of mind or have the energy to learn. With the provision of the hot meal programme, they can now enjoy a healthy breakfast before school starts so that they can be re-energised for the day’s work.

The REO averaged that about $1M a term is being expended on the hot meal programme which is a transitioned from the biscuit and juice programme. Children now have healthier and fresher options and farmers in the region are also benefitting from the provision.
Since both the PENS and the PETS were initiated the Region 10, the Department of Education has recorded a significant increase in both school attendance and punctuality, while absenteeism has seen a decline.