–Dr Jagdeo says, as he points to thousands of teachers trained, rehabilitation of over 100 schools, free university and debt write off

GUYANA’S Vice-President and People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) General Secretary Dr Bharrat Jagdeo, has stated that his government has delivered “unbelievable” progress within the education sector, rolling out free tertiary education, rehabilitating over 100 schools and training thousands of teachers, to name a few.

Speaking ahead of the September 1 General and Regional Elections, the Vice-President during his Thursday press conference at Freedom House detailed the sweeping list of achievements.

And he used the opportunity to caution the public not to fall prey to distorted facts being peddled by political opponents.

“[In] the education sector, it’s unbelievable the level of achievement that we’ve had with three and a half years after COVID,” he said.

The government has been able to commence and complete the rehabilitation of over 100 schools, trained or paid for the training for 82,000 Guyanese, 39,000 of those were Guyana Online Learning Academy (GOAL) scholarships, rolled out free university education and currently writing off $19 billion of student loans.

About 3,000 teachers have been trained since the government assumed office in 2020, Dr Jagdeo said.

This has resulted in a workforce of about 12,000 strong.

The Vice-President said this means that children will be able to get more personalised attention from teachers, since the student-to-teacher ratio is much lower.

Adding to this, he mentioned the improvements in the smart classrooms.

Dr Jagdeo also spoke about the government’s digital school that they have started to roll out.
The Guyana Digital School adopts a holistic four-quadrant approach, integrating technology, content, engagement, and hands-on experiences to enhance students’ learning.

“So, it’s been three and a half years of major achievements in the sector and the commitment has been there, given the increase in resources to the sector from $53 billion to $185 billion allocated,” he said.

As Dr Jagdeo spoke on the opposition’s pattern of recycling his government’s policies and branding them as their own, he urged Guyanese to take note of this.

“So, when I see now the opposition [is] trying to distort what we have been doing, I hope people pay attention to the facts,” he said.

Since 2020, the Ministry of Education has been committed to ensuring equitable access to quality education across the nation.

Key interventions included providing free access to high-quality textbooks, expanding the Learning Channel to reach remote communities and reintroducing and raising the ‘Because We Care’ cash grant programme to support families.

Notably, students who sat this year’s Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) and Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) will be reimbursed for at least eight subjects.

This complements the earlier announcement in April that the government would cover the cost of at least eight CSEC and CAPE subjects.

These initiatives and others have reduced barriers to educational resources and have helped to ensure that all learners can excel academically.