No School to be Left Behind During Reopening

Carol Babb

The Ministry of Education continues to receive financial assistance, as well as other donations from agencies across the country as it prepares for the reopening of schools on August tenth.  A number of organizations and businesses have come onboard with that initiative.  While Chief Education Officer Doctor Carol Babb has gone on record to list the various supplies the ministry has collected thus far, equitably distributing them among all one hundred and three schools across the country may pose a logistical challenge.  According to Doctor Babb, government has pledged not to leave any school behind.

Dr. Carol Babb, Chief Education Officer

“The Ministry of Education has met regularly with general managers and we have asked them to share their needs with us because we constantly remind them that we are not going to leave them on their own.  So Lifeline has helped.  I think Lifeline donated over a hundred and thirty thousand dollars and students from those, I think it was about forty schools, they paid all of their registration fees.  So parents from those schools would not have to pay registration fees.  In addition to that, we are also getting support from B.E.L., in addition to asking them to support us with hand washing basins, I asked them to support us with school feeding programs.  As you know, many parents are unemployed and they would be unable to provide lunch for their children and we want to ensure that all of our children get at least one healthy meal per day.”

Isani Cayetano

“From a logistical standpoint, once again, you’ve listed previously the number of items that have been given in terms of preparations for the new school year.  We look at the fifteen drums of sanitizer, if I may, that’s perhaps only for a start.  How do you plan on sustaining this kind of an initiative in each individual school throughout the course of the year or throughout the course of the pandemic in Belize?”

Dr. Carol Babb

“And that’s why we are going to reach out to the communities.  As I said before, we are not going to leave the schools on their own.  If schools need help, we are going to find people who are willing to support or the Ministry of Education will find a way.”