EDUCATION MINISTER PRIYA MANICKCHAND WEDNESDAY
LAUNCHED the sector’s five-year ambitious strategy which targets eliminating
Illiteracy, enhancing tolerance and modernising learning countrywide.
The 2021 – 2025 Education Sector Plan (ESP) is constructed on five planks:
improving governance and accountability; improving performance at all levels;
improving the efficiency of the education system; reducing inequities in education;
and encouraging life-long learning leading to employability.
Speaking at the launch held at the Arthur Chung Convention Centre (ACCC) in
Liliendaal, east of the capital city, Georgetown, minister Manickchand outlined the
importance of the quintet of supporting columns: “The five pillars of the plan, though
not all completely new, effectively capture core areas demanding our sustained focus
and attention over the ensuing years. They align with the (UN) Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs) and to the manifesto promises of the political party which
was elected.”
“Its implementation must be viewed as having deep national significance,” the
education minister said.
She said policymakers and implementers must adjust their strategies to changing
realities in the global learning environment.
“We are acutely aware of the need to both recognise and effectively address the
contextual realities of our various educational environments. Our approaches must
adapt to the unique demands of our complex, multilayered education context.
Relevance and responsiveness must be at the forefront of our approaches,” the
minister counselled.
“We must drill down to actionable components in a way that facilitates their effective
implementation across the system, accompanied by a robust monitoring and
evaluation system,” she said.
The country’s five-year ESP, Manickchand reported, is in step with current global
trends with help from regional and global institutions such as the World Bank, United
Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Caribbean Community (CARICOM), and United
Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).
“This is a sector plan being published in collaboration with all the world to make sure
we are all on the same page. It is hugely important if everybody is to be on the same
page and we are to march on as partners in the system.”
UNICEF’s Resident Representative, Nicolas Pron, concurred.
“From the conceptualisation of the plans to the final stages, UNICEF is very pleased
the MoE allowed for our participation. The achievement of this final document was no
easy feat. UNICEF remains committed to working side-by-side as all of us implement
it together,” Pron told the audience at Wednesday’s launch.
“An independent appraisal certified by the Global Partnership of Education appraised
this document and found it to be ‘a strong and responsive sector plan that is poised to
engender transformation change in the education landscape for Guyana’,” Chief
Planning Officer at the education Ministry, Nicola Johnson disclosed.
Chief Education Officer (CEO) Dr Marcel Hutson said the five-year blueprint “clearly
delineates a vision to move the education process forward. It effectively organises the
units of the MoE to work towards the achievement of a common agenda.”
“The plan encourages commitment by showing staff that their work is essential and
we are all part of a larger strategy to help our schools succeed,” Dr Hutson said.
September is ‘Education Month’ in Guyana.
This year, activities are held under the theme ‘Innovative teaching and learning in a
global pandemic’.
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