School repairs under way; school caterers get $3.3m

The THA Division of Education’s school repair programme is ongoing despite the covid19 pandemic.

So said secretary of the division Kelvin Charles as he addressed last week's post-Executive Council media briefing at the Victor E Bruce Financial Complex in Scarborough.

The scope of work was primarily priority infrastructure work such as "plumbing repairs, electrical repairs and upgrades, replacement of doors and windows, painting and other minor construction works."

He said it was divided into 55 packages and the overall cost for primary schools would hopefully be in the region of $13 million.

He commended the contractors, saying they had ten days to do a lot of the work to ensure schools were ready and available for SEA students last Monday.

“Given the reality that students had to be out on the 20th, we decided that we would do the primary schools first and we would do the secondary schools and ECCE centres in early August when the CAPE and CSEC exams by then would have been completed."

Repairs to most schools are finished, he said.

“There may be one or two elements still to be completed, but (that) would be done in the afternoons when the students leave so there is no disruptions or interruptions of the classes.”

The Executive Council has also approved payments to school feeding providers, as well as pan tutors who were also affected by the pandemic.

For 54 school nutrition providers, the payment of $3,366,990 was approved.

Financial assistance of $105,187.50 to 17 pan instructors in the pan in schools project, who train students in musical composition and performance on the different instruments has also been approved.