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North Georgetown Secondary students get help for Agri Science SBA
– Ministry donates planting materials, broiler chicks
Kaieteur News – Students of the North Georgetown Secondary School are no longer burdened with the costs associated with sourcing planting materials and livestock to support their School Based Assessments (SBAs), following a timely donation from the Ministry of Agriculture.
Head of the school’s Agriculture Science Department flanked by some of the students who benefitted from the donation.
On Wednesday Agriculture Minister, Zulfikar Mustapha donated a number of planting materials and broiler chicks to the Agriculture Science Department of the North Georgetown Secondary School, following a request for assistance by the department’s head, Benjettan Osborne. Osborne had reached out to the ministry requesting assistance with materials for students who are preparing for the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examination in 2022 and 2023.
Minister Mustapha while handing over the items said it was important for young people to be involved in agriculture and that the ministry will continue to make resources available to schools desirous of expanding their agriculture science department. “When I received the request from the school, I was delighted to know that the school was involved in agriculture. Quite often, youths believe that agriculture is a minimal job that is only for the mature population. I am happy that the students and teacher are interested in developing the school’s agriculture department and I am optimistic that the interest displayed by the students and teacher will allow them to excel and move on to further develop the sector in this country. In Guyana, every day our agriculture sector is expanding and, as a government, we are putting more resources so that development can continue to take place,” Minister Mustapha said.
The Minister also committed to having an extension officer meet with the students to offer technical advice and support while they perform practical exercises which form part of their SBAs in the lead up to writing the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examinations.
Kaieteur News understands that the donation yesterday consisted of 256 cabbage seedlings, 256 celery seedlings, 128 lettuce seedlings, 128 tomato seedlings, and 50 broiler chicks with feed.
Additionally, Minister Mustapha announced that the ministry will also be donating carrots, broccoli, and cauliflower seeds and seedlings along with a shade house to further enhance the school’s agriculture science department’s potential.
Head of the school’s Agri. Department, Benjettan Osborne said students are often left to bear the cost of materials to complete the practical aspect of their School-Based Assessments (SBAs) which most of them are finding difficult due to the financial pressures their parents are facing as a result of the global pandemic.
“Students would usually have to pool money in order to get things done like to buy seedlings, to buy birds, to buy feed, to buy everything as it relates to getting their practical done. This donation will help to alleviate that. Remember we are in a pandemic and we know a lot of parents cannot afford extra expenses. This donation will help to minimize the financial strain on students as it relates to doing the practical aspect of SBAs because it is a lot of work,” the teacher noted.
Minister Mustapha also said that the ministry will be offering support to other schools across the country to assist with developing the practical aspect of the agriculture science curriculum.
In the early part of next year, the ministry is expected to launch a programme targeting schools with active agriculture science departments. The programme will see schools benefiting from shade houses, tools, and planting materials for both traditional and non-traditional crops like broccoli, carrots, and cauliflower, as well as poultry. The National Agricultural Research and Extension Institute (NAREI) will also be offering soil analyses to schools as part of the programme.
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