THE push for universal secondary education in Guyana’s hinterland is moving full steam ahead, with the brand-new Kwebanna Secondary School set to transform learning opportunities for hundreds of children in Region One.

Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand, during a recent visit to the construction site in Kwebanna Village, confirmed that the school, once completed, will cater for around 700 students from Kwebanna and surrounding communities. The state-of-the-art facility will include dormitories to house approximately 300 to 400 students, providing critical access to education for children in remote villages.

“This school is going to take care of bringing in universal secondary education in this part of the Moruca sub-district,” Minister Manickchand affirmed. She noted that children from Asakata, Santa Cruz, Kariako, Warapoka, and other communities will benefit, with parents having the option to send their children to reside in Kwebanna during the school term.
The Kwebanna Secondary School is among five new secondary schools currently under construction in Region One alone, part of a larger nationwide effort to close the education gap between coastal and hinterland communities.

The school’s design includes a main lecture hall with more than 30 classrooms, fully equipped Science laboratories for Physics, Chemistry and Biology, and a modern Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) centre with Industrial and Home Economics labs. Students will also benefit from a canteen, cafeteria, sanitary facilities, and recreational spaces for basketball, cricket and other sports.

Safety features are built into the design, with fire escape exits, alarms, extinguishers, limited timber usage, metal ceilings, and fire-retardant panels to protect students and staff. A modern teacher’s quarters, dining hall and campus-style classroom blocks are also part of the project.

The school is being built through six contracts valued at $2.017 billion, awarded in July 2023 to local companies Supreme Contracting & Supplies, Bree’s Enterprise, AS Construction and Singh & Son Construction.

Minister Manickchand highlighted that the Ministry is also finalising works on Waramuri Secondary School and Hosororo Secondary School, while construction of Matthew’s Ridge Secondary School is underway. The recently completed Northwest Secondary School has already reopened after being rebuilt from the ground up following an arson attack.
“Wherever communities get larger, evolve, and we see there’s a need for a school, primary, nursery or secondary, it is going to be built. That is our commitment,” Minister Manickchand said, reaffirming the government’s promise to expand educational infrastructure across Guyana.

Currently, about 42 secondary schools are being constructed nationwide, with 24 located in the hinterland regions. The Minister noted that this investment will boost school retention rates and pave the way for more students to advance to higher education — which remains free at the University of Guyana and through the Guyana Online Academy of Learning (GOAL).
The new Kwebanna Secondary School stands as a testament to the government’s vision of equitable access to quality education for every Guyanese child, no matter how remote their community may be.