Schools that meet certain safety standards are certified as Safe, with those incorporating additional green practices being designated as SMART. Photo: DDM

Information and Education Manager at the Department of Disaster Management, Mrs Chrystall Kanyuck-Abel has said the department is looking to certify its largest number of Safe and Smart Schools before 2024 ends. Photo: UMOJA/Facebook

The current iteration of the BVI SMART Schools Project is funded by the European Union through the Resilience, Sustainable Energy, and Marine Biodiversity (RESEMBID) programme. Photo: Government of the Virgin Islands

Mrs Kanyuck-Abel was speaking on the latest UMOJA programme on October 25, 2024. The topic was Building Resilience through the BVI Smart School Project.

The project, managed by the Department of Disaster Management (DDM) in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, Green VI, H. Lavity Stoutt Community College and BVI Red Cross, seeks to enhance the resilience and sustainability of schools throughout the Territory.

Recertification following 2017 Hurricanes

Prior to the hurricanes of 2017, there were about five or six schools certified as either Smart or Safe.

“After 2017 we kind of had to start all over,” she said. By 2020, the DDM was able to recertify four schools as Smart and another four as Safe.

According to Mrs Kanyuck-Abel, the team realised that public schools needed a lot of support.

“Probably before the end of the year, we’re going to be recertifying the biggest crop of schools that we’ve ever been able to certify. Fingers crossed it will be all our target schools plus a few extras. So, I think it’s going to be a really cool milestone,” she revealed.

Once everything goes well, Mrs Kanyuck-Abel said over a dozen schools will be certified, and they may include the Elmore Stoutt High School and Bregado Flax Secondary Division.

“They are bigger schools they are kind of a bigger target to hit but we definitely aim to get them smart as well,” she stated.

Future funding

The current iteration of the BVI SMART Schools Project is funded by the European Union through the Resilience, Sustainable Energy, and Marine Biodiversity (RESEMBID) programme.

“Going forward, honestly, we’ll probably be looking to have more partners because it does take money when schools need new fire extinguishers, when schools need major repairs, when someone wants to install a ramp, it does cost quite a bit,” Mrs Kanyuck-Abel said.