BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – PERSONS waiting eagerly for the dissemination of the White Paper on Education may not have to wait much longer, as the document is due to be laid in Parliament later this month.
In an exclusive interview with SKNVibes, Permanent Secretary (PS) in the Ministry of Education Osmond Petty revealed that his office received the draft of the White Paper at the end of February from the Review Committee.
The White Paper’s predecessor, the Green Paper, was released for public consultation in November 2007. From that date until August last year, the general public was able to submit their recommendations on the document to the Ministry of Education.
According to the PS, the Ministry received submissions from a wide cross-section of the public including the private sector, civil society, non-governmental organisations, religious organisations and youth groups.
The Review Committee, which was comprised of the Ministry’s officials and human resource personnel in the private sector, was charged with the responsibility of incorporating these submissions into the document where necessary.
Petty further stated that the Ministry is now in the process of updating the draft and finalising the document. On Thursday (Mar. 12), a final review session with key stakeholders was conducted to ensure that the final draft is reflective of the reality of education now and in the future.
The document was submitted to an individual for final editing. Upon return of the document, Cabinet members will determine the timeline for laying the White Paper in the National Assembly.
Petty revealed that Education Minister Hon. Sam Condor is planning to lay the document in the next session of Parliament, which is rumoured to be held sometime next week. He expressed pleasure at the final script of the document and called it a policy that would advance the development of the citizens of St. Kitts and Nevis.
“The White Paper will be the nation’s central education policy until 2020. It deals with a wide array of issues including sports, after-school programmes, technical and vocational education, accreditation and early childhood development.
“It is a very comprehensive document and I am confident that with its implementation, the people of St. Kitts and Nevis will benefit tremendously,” Petty said.
