$49M in nursery schools commissioned at Mashabo, Tapakuma Lake

Thanks to a government investment of $49 million, children attending nursery schools now have beautiful, clean and safe learning facilities, following the commissioning of Mashabo and Tapakuma Lake Nurseries in Region Two.

Mashabo Nursery will be accommodating 35 pupils, two staff members, a qualified teacher, four pathway workers and two Community Service Officers (CSOs).

The Tapakuma Lake Nursery will serve 17 pupils, marking the establishment of the first nursery school in the village.

Before the schools were built, the young learners were housed in the primary schools, often leading to overcrowded and unsuitable conditions for both primary and nursery pupils.

The schools were declared open by Minister of Education Priya Manickchand, accompanied by Regional Chairperson Vilma Da Silva and other representatives from the community and ministry, on Tuesday.

The $23.7 million project to build Mashabo Nursery was awarded to Rose’s Construction in June 2023.

In June 2024, Triple P Construction and General Supplies won the $25.3 million contract to construct Tapakuma Lake Nursery.

Minister Manickchand highlighted that these new nurseries are part of a larger effort, with 67 nursery facilities built nationwide over the past three and a half years, which she described as the most ever constructed in a single five-year term.

“The most ever built in one five-year term…To have built 67 all over the country really should give you the magnitude of the work that the President Irfaan Ali-led government has put in to making sure that early learners can access their own space,” she pointed out. “Wherever we serve, we serve equally and equitably.”

Minister Manickchand also mentioned that the distribution of cash grants for both students and teachers will continue, and a transportation cash grant will be provided to parents to help cover transport costs.

Additionally, textbooks and other educational resources will be supplied to schools across the country.