Advancement of education in Guyana: a case study.

In addressing students in October 2000, Guyanese President Bharrat lagdeo reiterated a long-standing commitment of successive governments of Guyana: to ensure that every child is provided with quality education that is "relevant to the developmental aspirations of the individual and, by extension, to the nation as a whole". This vision of President Jagdeo is reflective o[ the aspiration of many leaders of developing countries and of the international community, given its encapsulation of both the individual and collective benefits to be derived from education Increasingly, there has been global recognition of the value of education as an instrument for change and its centrality to development in all its dimensions, including poverty reduction, improved health and sustainable economic growth.

In the context of Guyana, education has had a long and progressive history, and as early as the 1960s the system was heralded as one of the best in the English-speaking Caribbean. The genesis of such education is rooted in the British colonial power promulgation of the 1876 Act, which provided for compulsory education, as well as the societal value placed on education vis-a-vis social mobility. The nexus between education and development has not eluded the Governments in Guyana and has resulted in the maintenance of compulsory education, incremental expenditure, and policy and curriculum reform. In addition, the right of every individual to education has come to be viewed as a fundamental human right and accordingly enshrined in the Constitution of Guyana.

It is mandatory that children from age 5 years and 9 months to 15 years attend school, and failure on the part of parents to ensure that this is done is punishable by law. Primary education emphasizes the acquisition of numeracy and literacy skills, while the secondary level concentrates on preparation to pursue further studies, gain professional skills or undertake life in Guyanese society through the development of practical skills for employment. The recent inclusion of health and family life issues in the secondary school curriculum is also geared towards equipping the young to make informed choices regarding life in general.

One of the major boosts to greater access to education took place in 1976, when the Government guaranteed free education for all, from nursery school to university.

This policy undertaking included the prohibition of school fees, the movement away from single-sex to co-educational facilities, absorption of all private schools into the public education system, and the provision of textbooks free of cost to students. These initiatives complemented the existing framework for compulsory education and significantly improved access to it countrywide. In this process, however, the financial responsibility was transferred to the public sector.

The provision of compulsory free education can be considered a major undertaking by any Government and even more so in a small developing country In the context of Guyana, critics have questioned the Government's ability to sustain such a system and at the same time provide quality education. However, several benefits have been derived from this process. Firstly, the curriculum, as well as text books, particularly of primary schools, were revised to instil a greater appreciation and knowledge of Guyana and replaced the previous concentration on far-flung colonizing States. Secondly, the removal of the barriers of school fees and the provision of textbooks resulted in improved attendance and a reduction of costs borne by parents.

As a country, we have been able to attain some of the benchmarks established by intergovernmental processes, such as the Millennium Summit and the World Forum on Education. Guyana has, for instance, achieved universal primary education with 98 per cent enrolment at this level, according to the Human Development Report 2003, of the United Nations Development Programme, as well as gender parity with regards to access to primary, secondary and tertiary educational institutions.

In addition, there is a noticeable trend across all levels, of better performance of girls in comparison to their male counterparts, leading education planners to focus attention on the phenomenon of male under-achievement and on developing strategies to address this emerging trend. Several projects have also been undertaken, specifically at the nursery and primary school levels, to educate Amerindian children in the language spoken by their particular community, be it wapishana, arawak or makushi, and this has been proven to have a long-term positive effect on children's education

Guyanese students perform creditably in the regional Caribbean Examinations Council's secondary school examinations, and there have been record increases in the number of subject entries, which may be attributed in part to the provision of subsidies, especially to students in the lower-income level. Nevertheless, there are concerns that are being addressed at the highest levels regarding student enrolment and retention rates. The Strategic Plan of the Ministry of Education for the period 2003-2007 envisages the achievemenL of universal secondary education in the not-too-distant future.

Due to budgetary constraints and the implementation of a structural adjustment programme, skewed towards the reduction of social spending and the implementation of a rigid fiscal programme, there has been some erosion of the gains in education. The commitment to free education has had to be scaled back, beginning at the tertiary level. Other challenges faced include the migration of skilled teachers, lack of equipment and learning materials and, in some instances, the poor physical condition of educational facilities. It is for this very reason that the Government of Guyana has engaged in both bilateral and multilateral technical cooperation projects with various countries and agencies, including the United Kingdom, Canada, the Inter-American Development Bank, the United Nations Population Fund and the United Nations Children's Fund, with the aim of improving both primary and secondary education.

Programmes currently being implemented include the Secondary School Reform Programme, the Basic Education Accountability and Management Support, and the Guyana Education Access Project, which in varying forms include the elements of curriculum reform, acquisition of equipment and learning materials, including computers, teacher training and the construction/rehabilitation of educational facilities.

For Guyana, success has been achieved through the foundation laid during the colonial era, the prioritization of education by the Government, the role played by parents in ensuring that their children are educated and the support of the international community. The measures adopted by the Government to eliminate school fees, provide textbooks free of cost and ensure instruction in the language of the community, where necessary, have had positive impact.

However, experience teaches that poor countries pressed with debt-servicing commitments and constrained by structural adjustment programmes do need the financial and technical support of the international community and, particularly, the development of genuine partnerships in order to attain the established goals with regard to education. There is also the need for a reorientation towards the view of education as a social investment and not as social welfare.

Donnette Critchlow is Second Secretary at the Permanent Mission of Guyana to the UN. She has served in the Department of International Economic Cooperation, now part of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Guyana, where she dealt with bilateral cooperation and multilateral assistance.