Construction work of Goodwill Secondary School follows rapid progress, states PM Skerrit

Dominica: The construction work for building the new “Goodwill Secondary School” is going rapidly in the country. Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit shared the statement on this ongoing project through his social media while providing updates on the work’s progress.

The construction works for secondary schools are being done as a part of the Government’s commitment to building the infrastructure. It is part of an endeavour to rebuild and renovate the infrastructure that Hurricane Maria wrecked.

In 2017, at the time of Hurricane Maria, one of the school’s facilities was damaged. The announcement for its rehabilitation was then made by the government in August 2023 during the budget presentation for 2023–2024.

Considerably, the construction works were started on Good Secondary School in November 2023 as the previous structure was demolished. For its construction, the government of the People’s Republic of China has made a significant contribution by providing financial assistance through the China Aid Project. The rehabilitation of the school has been given in the hands of CCECC (The China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation ) contractors.

With a focus on technical and vocational education, the Goodwill Secondary School seeks to transform the nation’s educational system. PM Skerrit stated during the announcement that the school would be “a great strength” to the high standard of education received by Dominicans.

The institution will be formally named the National Center of Excellence for Technical and Vocational Education upon its completion.

The infrastructure of the school will include air conditioning, refrigeration, fabric design, technical drawing, auto mechanics, industrial arts, manufacturing of clothing, training facilities for food preparation, visual and performing arts, and music.

As a result of hiring local laborers for pre-construction positions, it has come out that the building of the new school has created jobs across the nation. The project’s quick pace will result in the creation of more job opportunities.

Importantly, the government of Dominica has planned to build six schools as part of the China Aid Project, including the new Goodwill Secondary School.

In addition to this secondary school, the nation will work on building five primary schools: Sineku, Calibishie, Thibaud, Bellevue Chopin, and Tete Morne Primary Schools.

The Prime Minister also highlighted that the new infrastructure will aid in implementing certain new policies that would form the foundation of the education sector’s transformation. These include the implementation of the new curriculum, teaching strategies, and testing criteria.

The infrastructural development through this directs towards the overall development of the country. Also, it states the fulfilling commitment of the authorities for the betterment of the community.