The people of Carriacou turned out in their numbers on Friday afternoon to witness the official handing over of the newly built Hillsborough Government School. The school which was severely damaged by Hurricane Ivan in 2004 was temporarily housed at the Community Center in Hillsborough. The new state of the art facility was constructed by local contractor Mr. Abraham Pope to the tune of two million, forty seven thousand, five hundred and sixteen dollars $2,047,516.00 ECD. Financing for the project was obtained by the Government of Grenada through a loan from the Caribbean Development Bank. Cutting the ribbon to symbolize the official handing over of the facility were Minister for Foreign Affairs, Carriacou & Petite Martinique Honourable Elvin Nimrod and Minister with responsibility for Education , Labour and Legal Affairs Honourable Claris Charles. The Education Minister called on all parents to ensure that their children attend school every day. Minister Charles said that with programmes such as the School Feeding Programme and the Text Book Programme, students have no excuse to be absent from school. Honourable Elvin Nimrod said that his Government continues to place Education as a priority because it is the key to opportunities. The Minister said that there are approximately 85 students from Carriacou and Petite Martinique studying at Universities throughout the world and that his Government will continue to invest in the education of its people from preschool to tertiary. The new facility has an overall floor space of approximately 14,000 square feet and will house ten classrooms, computer room, library, staffroom, principal’s office, students’ washroom, storage room, and students’ lunch room. External works include re-grading of the site and grassing of the playing field, construction of footpaths and fencing of the school property. Source: Office of the Prime Minister