Region Six has recorded its highest opening-day school attendance in five years, alongside a corresponding rise in government cash grant support to families under the Because We Care programme.
Schools across the region recorded 83 per cent attendance among learners on the first day of the new academic year, up from between 72 and 75 per cent during the opening week of 2025, 70 per cent in 2024, approximately 65 per cent in 2023 and approximately 54 per cent in 2022.
The improvement has come as the annual Because We Care grant rose from $19,000 per student in 2021 to $30,000 in 2022, $40,000 in 2023, $45,000 in 2024 and $55,000 in 2025. For the 2026 academic year, the grant has been increased to $85,000 per student, comprising a $60,000 core grant, a $5,000 uniform voucher and a $20,000 transportation subsidy.
Chairwoman of the Regional Education Committee and Regional Councillor Shenelly Jafarally disclosed the attendance figures during the Region Six Regional Democratic Council’s monthly statutory meeting, saying significant efforts were made ahead of the reopening to ensure schools were ready.
“We had attendance for teachers at 97 per cent, and for learners we had a per cent attendance of 83, I must say that, Chair, I know all of our schools were open,” she said. “We had contractors and we had our electrical and plumbing crew out trying to get schools fixed, we also provided, um, furniture to our schools to ensure that our schools were in a state of readiness.”
According to Jafarally, while some schools experienced minor issues after reopening, these were addressed as they were reported.
“We must understand that the schools were closed for 8 weeks, so when they did, school reopened, everybody plugged in all their fans, ACs were on, all the other things were plugged in, so then it’s when sometimes you had some failure in somewhere or the other, and those were reported and fixed. Our team is still out fixing issues as they arise,” she disclosed.
Jafarally said the regional education team will continue working to address infrastructure and other challenges affecting schools as the academic year progresses.
