Babonneau Secondary to Open Next Year

Contact: Richmond Felix

November 3, 1998 - One of the components of the Basic Education Reform Project seeks to address the provision of secondary school places in areas currently under served. Through the conduct of a school-mapping exercise, regions like Anse Ger, Laborie and Babonneau have been identified as priority areas for attention.

To date a new Secondary School at Paiye has been constructed and the Soufriere Comprehensive School has been relocated. Rehabilitation works on selected primary schools have also been ongoing. The Basic Education Reform Project is not just centered around civil works but also improvements in the quality of education at the primary and secondary level.

Work is now in progress on the construction of a secondary school at Babonneau. Speaking Monday at the sod turning ceremony Education Minister the Honourable Mario Michel said "Come what May. I want to give you the absolute assurance that come the start of the September 1999 academic year students will be admitted to the Babonneau Secondary School." Although constructuion work is expected to take approximately 14 months, the Minister made the promise mindful of the fact that it may that students have to be accomodated in some kind of temporay structure, while the school is being completed.

Meantime Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry and District Representative for Castries North West\Babonneau, the Honourable Michael Gaspard expressed his delight with this latest development. He said that the new school would significantly reduce the stresses of traveling outside of the community, on both the students and parents. However, Mr. Gaspard was quick to add some words of caution for some prospective students. Gaspard "The school is located in Babonneau, but it belongs to the people of St. Lucia. Everyone will has an equal opportunity to attend the school like you (children of Babonneau). So you have to work extremely hard to get a place in the secondary school."

Completion costs of the Babonneau Secondary School is estimated at $5.6 million. It will contain a multi-purpose recreational court, and facilities for subjects like Agricultural Science, Industrial Arts, Home Management and Home Economics. The institution will have the capacity to house 525 students.

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