The Ministry of Education yesterday, signed a $566.9 million contract for the reconstruction of the North Ruimveldt Secondary School building that was destroyed by fire on June 19, 2021.
Kares Engineering Inc was awarded the contract following the tendering process.
The contract for the project consultancy was awarded to Marcel Gaskin but the sum of that contract was not released.
In a statement, the Ministry said that every time a school is destroyed, there is a domino effect of actions that have an adverse effect on learning. According to Minister of Education Priya Manickchand, 150 students are placed at the school every year following the National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) but due to the classrooms being destroyed the placement total was reduced to approximately 50 students.
“This is the top school for South Georgetown. So, it means many families in South Georgetown whose children ordinarily could have come here will have to travel further to access the quality of education that was being delivered here,” the Minister was quoted as saying.
The new building will measure 432ft (length) x 30ft (width) x 42ft (height). It will have three storeys and will accommodate 450 to 500 students. The school will be fitted with science laboratories, Information Technology laboratories, new classrooms, teacher accommodation, a sanitary block and a modern external structure. The project period is 14 months.
According to Manickchand, there were doubts about whether the school would be rebuilt but she added that the awarding of the contract and turning of the sod signifies the government’s commitment to ensuring that education is placed on the front burner. The Minister said that though the project will be supervised by the consultant and the Ministry of Education, she wants the South Georgetown community to play an integral role in ensuring that the work is done according to contract.
In the presence of representatives of the contracting firm, Kares Engineering, Manickchand said that when contractors fail to do what they are supposed to do, children and communities suffer.
“It is very important that we complete this at a high quality in the time that we said we would complete it so that we can make sure that the children of South Georgetown see what we intended for them to receive,” she added.
The Minister announced that moving forward, whenever a new school is being built the Ministry will ensure that an Education Officer is attached to the project team to ensure quality work is being done. With Education Month 2022 about to begin, under the theme “Transforming Education”, Minister Manickchand said that this project will have significance and that she hopes to see its completion so that learners can benefit.
Head teacher of North Ruimveldt Secondary Allison Cosbert hailed the commencement of the project.
