$940M Christ Church Secondary School commissioned

Jul 04, 2025 News

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By Allyiah Allicock

Kaieteur News – Two years after fire destroyed the original Christ Church Secondary School, located at the corner of Camp and Middle Streets, Georgetown, the Ministry of Education commissioned a $940.7 million school.

The new school was commissioned on Thursday by President Irfaan Ali and Minister of Education Priya Manickchand. Also in attendance were Prime Minister Mark Phillips and Minister of Home Affairs Robeson Benn.

Fire, maliciously set, destroyed the school in January 2023 and the students were relocated to the Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE), Turkeyen for classes.

President Ali officially declared the school open.

“So just two and a half years ago this very institution – Christ Church Secondary School was a victim of a vicious act. Maliciously set on fire, a cruel hand was dealt to this school, its students and its staff. In a matter of hours, decades of memories, traditions and dreams were reduced to ashes. The blaze disrupted not only a physical structure but the academic path of hundreds of students. It fractured routine, halted progress and cast uncertainty over the future of the cherished education community. But today, with hearts full of pride and eyes lifted towards promise, we declared without hesitation and without apology, Christ Church is back and back in business, the business of education, empowerment and enlightenment,” he said.

 

Emphasising his government’s commitment to ensuring equitable access to secondary education and the investment made to achieve universal secondary education, the president said that 40 new secondary schools are being constructed across the country, while hundreds are being rehabilitated.

President Ali described the investment in the schools as “bridges to opportunity”. “They are declarations that every child matters, no matter where they are born or what their last name is. Just days ago, I had the privilege of opening the new St. George’s School of Sciences and every corner of Guyana, from every coast to the savannahs, I have been opening doors. Doors that will never again be closed to our young people and this is important,” he said.

According to the head-of-state, his government’s target is clear and that is to achieve universal secondary education by the end of 2026.

“Universal secondary education by the end of next year, that is not a slogan. It is a solemn commitment and by the end of this year, we aim to have 100% of our teachers either trained or in training because quality education demands not just access to buildings but to trained teachers,” he stated.

President Ali made it clear that secondary education is no longer a luxury, it is a necessity, adding that it is no longer optional but mandatory for survival and success in today’s world.

“We are living in an era and an age defined by information, innovation and imagination. The world is no longer powered simply by oil and ore but by ideas, inventions, innovations, and intellect and to compete, to strive to lead in this world of ideas, inventions, innovation, and intellect we must equip our young people with the competence of the 21^st century,” the president explained.

Noting that as of 2023, some 250 million school-aged children around the world were out of school, he said Guyana will not be part of these statistics or fall into the cracks of neglect or under-investment.

Meanwhile, Minister Manickchand said that when the original structure was destroyed in January 2023, it was a devastating moment not only for the education family but for the school which was accommodating some 560 students at the time.

Noting it was a worrying moment, she recalled that following the fire, President Ali called an urgent meeting with her and her team to discuss the way forward to not only rebuild Christ Church but also St. George’s High School.

Manickchand said that following the meeting with the president, the process to identify contractors, and the construction of the modern school began.

“It is not only about building schools, we are making sure that once your children come into the school, we are going to have solidly trained teachers for them,” the minister said.

In June 2023, the education ministry signed seven contracts totalling $688.1 million to rebuild the school.

That aside, the education minister disclosed that in Georgetown alone, the number of trained teachers has increased since 2020, noting that at that time, there were 73% of trained teachers. However, there are currently 98.5% of teachers trained in Georgetown.

The three-storey building consists of 20 classrooms to accommodate between 30 to 40 students each. There are eight laboratories, a library, an auditorium/ multi-purpose indoor area, male and female washrooms, a main staffroom (inclusive of lunchroom, washroom and showers), a sick bay, a canteen and a storage room, to name a few.

The school also consists of fire prevention and retardant mechanisms and components. Some of these include, but are not limited to, fire extinguishers, smoke detectors, and some materials that will be used that are not highly flammable.

 

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• Allyiah Allicock, Camp and Middle Streets, Christ Church Secondary School, Cyril Potter College of Education, Priya Manickchand, School Fire

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