CONSTRUCTION WORK ON THE MAHAUT PRIMARY SCHOOL IS ONGOING

The Government of Dominica has always highlighted the importance of education, an importance that has been shown through the efforts and various initiatives implemented to further develop the education sector.

These developments continue as residents of Mahaut will be able to boast of a newly constructed resilient, modern and fully equipped primary school in the near future.

The Mahaut Primary School was one of the many schools which were impacted by the passage of Hurricane Maria in 2017. Due to the severe damage to the building, the school was deemed unusable and students and the teachers have since been utilizing the community centre.

The new Mahaut Primary School is being built at a cost of 7.5 million dollars and is another indication of Government's continued investments in the education sector and overall development of society and the economy.

'We are here in Mahaut and this is a major investment in the current and future generations of Mahaut. And when you talk education in this country, historically both ancient and contemporary history, no one can challenge the fact that this Labour Party has invested heavily in education. There is no way you can build an economy, build a society and have your students compete if they do not have access to education. And so, we went about in a very pragmatic and strategic way of redeveloping access to education and transforming the landscape of education for the better,' stated Prime Minister of Dominica, Hon. Roosevelt Skerrit.

Prime Minister Skerrit noted that with Government doing its part by building the required infrastructure and putting other investments and initiatives in place, the parents and communities must also play their part to ensure that the students are able to maximize their abilities.

'So now it is left to us now as parents and students to recognize the investments that Government is making in our children and to play our part. Most parents sometimes don't even go to PTA meetings, they don't know their children's teachers. We have to take back our responsibilities as a society to ensure that every child in our country can succeed and do well, because every child has that innate ability, that God given talent and ability to do well. They just need to be nurtured, molded, guided; and it will take the entire village to educate our children and mold them. We cannot leave it only to the teachers. They have their part to play, but we as parents, we as the community, we have to play our part in molding our students,' the Prime Minister added.

Parliamentary Representative for the Mahaut Constituency Hon. Rayburn Blackmoore stated that he hopes the new school will improve the delivery of education to the students of the community.

'Our hope is that this new school will produce more emphasis on those key area of learning that are the pre requisites for functioning in a modern economy and society. I do hope that this new school will fashion and education and learning culture that certainly leaves no child behind. I wish to add to that view of the construction of the new school building for Mahaut that it will be utilized, not just to serve the primary needs of our primary education, but to have a unique place in our quest to broaden the delivery of education across the various sectors and groups in our communities in the Mahaut Constituency,' the Mahaut MP stated.

An auditorium and early childhood education facility will also form part of the school building, additions that the MP noted that he is pleased to see.

'I am happy that we are adding an auditorium as part of the school building, so that we can offer cultural programmes and boost the artistic development of our people. I am very pleased that an early childhood component is being added to the school, recognizing that early childhood education is the most formative years in a continuum of education,' Hon. Blackmoore noted.

Minister for Education, Human Resource Planning, Vocational Training and National Excellence Hon. Octavia Alfred thanked the Mahaut Village Council for accommodating the students of the primary school since the passage of Maria.

'The Ministry of Education thanks all of you for your patience. We extend our gratitude to the Mahaut Village Council for providing the space for our children since the hurricane. Thank you to the staff for the graciousness extended to the teachers and students and for ensuring that our students were able to continue their learning in a welcoming environment. We highly commend the parents of the students who attend the Mahaut Primary School for your understanding, your sacrifice, your efforts and your collaboration. The challenges were here but we always found a way to work around them. You are indeed extra-ordinary,' the Education Minister stated.

Minister for Public Works and the Digital Economy Hon. Cassanni Laville noted that the facility will provide a foundation to further mold students into a successful generation.

'This foundation will support new facilities, new amenities and modern services to nurture our youth and give them a better start. This is a learning institution for the new age, for the future, this is another bold step to securing the future of a new generation,' Hon. Laville added.

The school, which is being funded through the Citizenship By Investment Programme, is being constructed by Montreal Management Consultants Establishment (MMCE).

Project Director of Montreal Management Consultants Establishment (MMCE), Mr. Cal Murad explained that upon completion the school will also be able to provide day care services.

'We have this primary school not only for primary but we have a day care facility. We have a kitchen, we have the showers, babysitting facilities, and all of this will be included. Even the teachers that have the newborns and children, they will be free to come and put their kids in day care. After that we have Kindergarten 1, Kindergarten 2 up to the 6^th grade,' Murad explained.

Principal of the Mahaut Primary School Miss Nola Stedman expressed her thanks for the construction of the new school stating that 'We are truly grateful to the Government of Dominica and all who has played a part in the construction. We are happy because our school is coming.'

The end of construction is carded for January 2022.

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