KINGSTON, Jamaica – The Government says it has invested more than $1.8 billion across the education sector to help rescue kids from the learning loss crisis.

Minister of Education and Youth Fayval Williams made the disclosure during her contribution to the 2022/23 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives on Tuesday, April 12.

“This figure does not include our continued support of online/media platforms and educational resources, which is $1.2 billion at the primary level and $1 billion at the secondary level,” she stated.

“We know that it is not enough for schools simply to reopen their doors at what appears to be the end of COVID-19. Students will need tailored and sustained support to help them readjust and catch up after the pandemic,” she added.

In this regard, the Ministry says it continues to benefit from the support of international partners such as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) in its efforts to provide quality education through technology and capacity building of teachers.

Minister Williams said UNICEF is supporting literacy and numeracy development through increased student access to learning resources, while UNESCO has provided training and the sharing of lessons learned from addressing the COVID pandemic in various jurisdictions.

“They have also facilitated several workshops to improve the use of technology in teaching. We want to thank the Inter-American Development Bank [IDB] and the World Bank, as well, for their technical and financial support in many areas, specifically in helping us with platforms and analysis for the vast amount of data generated in the education sector,” she stated.

The IDB says it will also be working with the Ministry to digitise its learning resources.