The Government of Fiji has endorsed a second amendment of the grant agreement with the Government of Indonesia in relation to Phase Two of the rehabilitation of Queen Victoria school. According to Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka, the amendment extends the duration of Phase Two from December 2022 to the end of July 2023. The PM stated that the construction is at its finishing stages with the structural shell being completed along with installation of roof framing.
This assistance provided by Indonesia is the continuation of its commitment to supporting Fiji’s ‘Adopt a School” program in the aftermath of Tropical Cyclone Winston in 2016. The first phase of funding enabled the renovation of existing dormitory structures and construction of classroom blocks, with rehabilitation works set to continue with the funding secured in the second phase.
On the same occasion, the PM also highlighted that Cabinet has also approved the re-establishment of the Board of Governors for 13 Governmental Schools. He added that the role of the boards is to provide effective oversight and into the management and governance of the schools after they were previously abolished in 2015.
Queen Victoria School was established in 1906 and is located in Tailevu Province, about 90 kilometres north of Fiji’s capital, Suva. Tropical Cyclone Winston caused serious damage to the facilities and Indonesia offered a grant under the Fiji Government’s ‘Adopt a School” program. The bilateral agreement forming the basis of this assistance was signed by Indonesia and Fiji on the sidelines of the 74th session United Nations General Assembly in September 2019 and provided a grant USD 1.9 million, which was used for the reconstruction of dormitories at the school.
Source: https://fijilive.com/govt-approves-qvs-renovation-works/
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