WILLEMSTAD – The number of schools in Curaçao will decrease from 95 to 60. At least, that's what the Ministry of Education anticipates. The number is based on the current and future number of school-going children on the island.
The Minister of Education, Science, Culture, and Sport, Sithree van Heydoorn, stated this in response to questions from PAR parliamentarian Steven Croes about the large-scale school renovation project in Curaçao.
Croes had inquired about the total costs for renovating all schools. According to the minister, given Curaçao's population and the number of births per year, the demand for schools is decreasing.
Based on birth rates, the required number of school buildings in Curaçao will be approximately sixty in three years, a decrease of more than thirty percent. Not all schools, according to the minister, need to be renovated.
For the current project, funded with Dutch funds, it is estimated that about twenty schools can be renovated for a total amount of sixty million guilders, averaging two million per school for renovation.
If forty more schools need renovation, eighty million guilders will be required. The Dutch government has pledged thirty million euros. According to Van Heydoorn, it is crucial to assess which schools need renovation and which do not.
It is also noted that not all schools require major maintenance. Schools in good condition will receive maintenance from the regular budget of the government of Curaçao. A request has even been submitted to the fund working group to improve sports facilities for schools.