The Regional Administration of Region Eight (Potaro/Siparuni) recently installed two solar panels with accessories valued some $1.5 million at Mahdia primary and nursery schools.

A press release from the Office of the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) said the panels and accessories will replace the dry cell (torchlight) batteries which operate the CD players and other audio/visual apparatus used in the schools.

According to the release, District Education Officer Ronald Dublin said that the Department of Education had been supplying dry cell batteries to the schools through the RDC to assist with the Interactive Radio Instruction (IRI) programme for pupils from Grades 1 to 3 and for those in the nursery schools for the ‘Hooked on Phonics’ programme but the exercise was very costly.  However, the use of the solar panel system proved reliable.

And Regional Executive Officer Ishwar Dass said that the administration has installed solar panels and accessories in primary schools in the North Pakaraimas at Monkey Mountain, Kato and Kamana and at Paramakatoi Nursery School. It is the intention of the Regional Administration to supply every school in the region with alternative energy so that pupils in the far-flung areas can benefit equally from IRI as pupils in other areas.

Meanwhile, efforts are being made to provide electricity by use of wind turbines to Campbelltown and solar power to Kaibarupai and Waipa through the Rural Electrification Programme at the Office of the Prime Minister, the release stated.

Apart from Kurukubaru, a beneficiary of the Rural Electrification Programme, where the entire village is supplied by solar power and Mahdia which has a regular supply of electricity during the evenings and in some areas during the day, no other village has a scheduled electrification system, the release noted.