Education Ministry to publish fortnightly updates on hurricane-related school repairs

The Jamaican Ministry of Education, Skills, Youth and Information will begin publishing fortnightly updates on hurricane-related school repairs, including project costs, contractors and expected completion dates, as part of efforts to improve transparency and public accountability.

Education Minister Senator Dana Morris Dixon announced the initiative while addressing the Ministry's Second Annual Region Six Principals' Retreat at the Ocean Coral Spring Resort in Trelawny on Tuesday.

She said the online updates will cover all schools undergoing hurricane-related repairs, allowing Jamaicans to monitor the progress of projects funded by taxpayers.

"We're going to be putting that online so that everybody can see what the statuses of the schools are... [in terms of which ones are] being repaired within the timelines given, et cetera. All that information will be provided, and we'll do it every two weeks," Morris Dixon said.

The minister disclosed that 77 Priority Two schools in Region Six require repairs following the passage of Hurricane Melissa, with work scheduled to begin during the summer break.

While outlining the ministry's plans, Morris Dixon acknowledged that the pace of repair and maintenance work across the education sector has been slower than expected.

She said the ministry is examining ways to improve the responsiveness of its maintenance programme, including increasing the number of technical personnel available to oversee and carry out repairs.

Morris Dixon also urged principals at schools slated for repairs to carefully review the scope of the planned works to ensure longstanding maintenance issues are addressed while contractors are already on site.

"Let's get the most out of this money that is being spent," she said.

She further encouraged school leaders to incorporate staff-room improvements, plumbing upgrades and accessibility features into repair projects wherever possible, maximizing the value of the hurricane recovery programme.