THE Ministry of Education has officially opened bids for contractors to rebuild the Christ Church Secondary School which was ravaged by a fire earlier this year.

According to an invitation for bids (IFB) issued by the Ministry of Education and published by several print and online media platforms, reputable contractors are being sought for reconstruction and furnishing of the school.

Bids for the project are to be submitted no later than April 13, 2023 at the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) office.

According to the IFB, bidding will be conducted through the National Committee Bidding (NCB) procedures, specified in the Procurement Act 2003, and Regulations 2004.

No estimated cost for the project has yet been released; however, some $12.4 billion was allocated to the ministry for construction, rehabilitation, extension, and maintenance of education facilities across the country in the 2023 national budget.

On January 12, 2023, a fire which was confirmed to have been maliciously set ravaged the Christ Church Secondary School.

Firefighters, prior to January 12, had responded to a chemical reaction at the school’s science laboratory. Firefighters had saved the building from burning then and had removed all chemicals from the building to prevent a recurrence.

An investigation after the second fire determined that it was maliciously set, as several points of origin were found.

The Guyana Fire Service had explained that following the first incident which was caused by a chemical reaction combustion, all chemicals were removed from the building.
The school was later inspected and certified by the Government Electrical Inspectorate, which ruled out the possibility of the second fire being electrical in origin. This led authorities to believe that the second fire was an act of arson.

Approximately 502 students and 39 teachers displaced from the institution, are currently being accommodated at the Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE) located at Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown.