20 new secondary schools to be opened in September

Education Minister Priya Manickchand has announced that at least 20 new secondary schools will be opened across Guyana in time for the new academic term in September 2025.
This achievement marks a significant leap towards the realization of universal secondary education in the country.
The announcement was made during the launch of the National STEM Fair on Wednesday, when the Minister highlighted Government’s ongoing commitment to transforming the education landscape.
Manickchand emphasised that by mid-2026, Guyana would achieve full secondary school access in every region – a major milestone that has eluded successive governments for decades.
According to data provided at the event, a total of five new secondary schools are located in Region One (Barima-Waini); four new ones are in Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni); three new ones are in Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni), and there are seven new ones located in Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo), among other places.
“We are at a place where, by September of this year, we will be opening at least 20 new secondary schools across this country. And by mid next year, we would have achieved universal secondary education across Guyana. I was saying to someone, ‘Only in Georgetown we have built, and are going to be opening shortly, the new Christ Church Secondary; the new St. George’s Secondary; the new St. Mary’s Secondary, which, I will let you in to a secret now, will become the new Brickdam Secondary,” the Minister has said.
Acknowledging the unique logistical and geographic challenges Guyana faces in delivering education, particularly in the hinterland, the Minister
explained that projects such as the Jawalla and Philippi Secondary schools have faced temporary delays because fluctuating water levels have been affecting transportation of materials. However, she has assured that with persistent effort, these hurdles are being addressed.
“We’ve always struggled with access to secondary education, and the reason we’ve struggled is because our geography is very different from Caribbean islands; and I say islands. We’re a country. We have to put a school on a mountaintop, or at the bottom of a valley, or on a bank somewhere, a river bank…,” she detailed.
“You have schools like Jawalla and Philippi, who had to go on pause right now because the water level was so low – I think that would change after the last couple of days – that material could not reach the school on boats and pontoons,” she explained.
The Minister highlighted that increasing access to education is only one part of Government’s agenda. A higher quality of education and a more varied curriculum are also critical to the Ministry’s transformation strategy.
Government has, since 2020, added over 4,000 teachers to the national system, pushing the total teaching workforce to over 14,000. Crucially, 99 percent of these teachers are either trained or undergoing training — a significant improvement from 72 percent when the administration took office.
Additionally, Government is integrating TVET (technical and vocational education and training) into all secondary schools. Students would now have the opportunity to earn Caribbean vocational qualifications (CVQs), opening pathways for employment and entrepreneurship in agriculture, construction, technology, and other trades.