As the new academic term approaches, Trinidad and Tobago’s Education Minister Dr Michael Dowlath has issued a formal confirmation that every public school across the nation’s eight educational districts — seven in Trinidad and one in Tobago — will welcome students on schedule when the term opens on Monday. The announcement came following an on-site inspection tour of two education facilities in Debe, addressing ongoing public concerns about delayed infrastructure repair works across the island nation’s aging school network.
During press briefings after his visit to Parvati Girls’ Hindu College, Dowlath acknowledged that a small number of schools across Tobago still have outstanding maintenance issues, but he confirmed all outstanding problems will be fully resolved by the end of the weekend. For sites where repair work will extend into the new term, the minister outlined clear safety protocols: active work zones will be fully cordoned off from student access, and prominent warning signage will be posted to eliminate safety risks, allowing classes to proceed without disruption.
This year, the government has expanded its national school repair programme dramatically, with more than 350 separate projects underway across the country – a marked increase from previous years. The National Maintenance Training and Security Company Ltd (MTS) has been appointed as the lead project manager for the entire initiative, focusing upgrades on high-priority infrastructure including restroom facilities, sewer and electrical systems, potable water storage, roof repairs, classroom structural upgrades, and replacement of outdated furniture. Dowlath explained that the full cost of the programme is still being compiled, so no final estimate has been released to the public.
In addition to planned vacation repairs, the ministry also initiated a round of emergency maintenance after school principals conducted a nationwide campus inspection two weeks prior to the start of term. Many dormant campus systems, particularly plumbing and sewer lines, develop unexpected issues after sitting unused through the holiday break, and these emergency problems require urgent resolution. To meet the deadline, MTS has deployed teams working 24-hour shifts over the weekend to finalize all critical works before Monday’s opening.
Addressing widespread questions about why repairs did not begin in July as many stakeholders expected, Dowlath clarified that all projects must go through mandatory statutory approval processes for electrical, plumbing and sewer works, which introduced unavoidable delays. To ensure compliance and safety, multiple oversight bodies are monitoring works: the Ministry of Public Utilities provides regulatory supervision, the Ministry of Education deploys on-site school supervisors, and MTS manages day-to-day construction activities.
For schools facing furniture shortages, Dowlath noted that MTS is also leading procurement of new desks and seating through the official Office of Procurement Regulation (OPR) process, and teams are accelerating the process to deliver supplies as quickly as possible. The new digital Schools’ Infrastructure Management System (SIMS) is already improving communication, allowing principals to submit and track maintenance requests in real time. At Parvati Girls’ Hindu College, for example, principal Dr Sharda Maharaj-Ramjattan used the platform to push for upgrades to new Form Six student accommodation, and work is currently progressing on schedule to expand capacity for the college’s senior cohort, who are currently housed in temporary prefabricated buildings.
The inspection tour also included a visit to the new temporary campus being prepared for Grant Memorial Presbyterian School’s Infants to Standard Two student cohort. The original wing these students occupied was deemed structurally unsafe by the Ministry of Works, so the students will be temporarily decanted to a renovated space at St Paul’s Anglican School, with all repairs set for completion by Sunday.
Earlier this week, the parent-teacher association of Marabella North Secondary School publicly raised concerns about multiple unaddressed infrastructural and maintenance issues at their campus. Dowlath confirmed that MTS CEO Nicholas Kanhai is personally aware of the issues, and work is already underway to resolve them. Kanhai noted that the national repair programme prioritizes schools with the most critical needs, meaning some campuses will receive more extensive upgrades than others. As of this week, more than 100 projects across the country have been fully completed, and Kanhai emphasized that no school will be blocked from opening on Monday due to unfinished work. In the small number of cases where works extend into the term, all active construction will be scheduled after school hours and on weekends to avoid disrupting classes.
Dowlath also addressed the systemic context of the country’s school infrastructure crisis: between 2016 and 2024, many school campuses were left underfunded and neglected, and more than half of the over 800 schools in the Trinidad and Tobago education system are more than 50 years old. The current expanded repair programme is designed to address this decades-long backlog and bring all campuses up to modern safety standards. Finally, the minister confirmed that eligible children from the migrant population will be allowed to enroll in schools for the new term as long as they meet all official registration requirements.