40 mothers graduate from re-integration programme in East Berbice

Feb 09, 2020 News

As the Government of Guyana pushes ahead with the initiative of making education available to all, some 40 mothers of the East Berbice Corentyne, Region Six recently graduated from the Ministry of Education’s Re-integration of Adolescent Mothers Programme. The programme is being executed through the Ministry’s Health and Family Life Education (HFLE) Unit. The young women are now certified in areas of hair braiding, make-up, manicure and pedicure, nail art and henna designs. The programme lasted for 15 weeks.

One of the graduates receives her rewards from Minister Nicolette Henry

Speaking at the graduation ceremony, Minister of Education, Dr. Nicolette Henry, stated that the re-integration programme is necessary for young women to enjoy their right to an education which will help to improve their lives and that of their children.
She said that the administrators of education would be derelict in their duties if they did not ensure that girls who become pregnant are given an opportunity to continue their schooling.
The minister noted that before, adolescent girls who become pregnant hadn’t much chance of returning to school to continue their education.
“However, with this policy the schools are mandated to ensure that the child is reintegrated into the school system using one of the options that are available.”
Minister Henry said that the goal of the re-integration policy is not only to manage the reintegration of adolescent mothers into the formal school system, but also to advance the prevention of adolescent pregnancy.
This government, the Minister said, is committed to helping Guyanese in the journey of lifelong learning.
Executive Director of Family Awareness Consciousness Togetherness (FACT), Ms. Annette Jaundoo, said that some of the graduates also received training in time management, decision making, and job readiness.
Remarks were also made by Regional Executive Officer Kim Stephens, and Regional Education Officer, acting Ms. Bhagmattie LaCruz
Each student received a certificate as well as a start-up kit for their respective field of specialization and a care package.