With an investment of more than Lm3 million, a secondary school being built in Qormi will be completed in time for the next scholastic year, making it the second school to be constructed in under two years.

Speaking during a visit yesterday, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi said that work on the new school began just nine months ago and it was being built to the same specifications and standards as St Benedict’s College in Kirkop.

Dr Gonzi, who was accompanied by Education Minister Louis Galea, said the government was in the process of constructing new schools in Qormi and Cospicua, while the construction of three more schools, in Gozo, Mosta and Pembroke, would start in the coming months.

The Qormi school has 8,000 square metres of space for teaching, spread over four floors. It will have 45 classrooms, 18 resources rooms, 17 science laboratories and five computer laboratories. It will also have several special class-rooms for teaching drama, music, art and technical drawing, as well as a canteen, guidance and counselling rooms, a clinic, a library and administration offices. The school will also have a multi-purpose hall, a nine-a-side football ground covered with artificial turf and a 200-metre athletics track. In addition, a Greek Theatre and other sports facilities are planned.

Two large reservoirs for the storage of 1.2 million litres of water are being built for use by the school, which will also have solar water heaters and solar panels for electricity generation, while a small wind turbine is also being planned.

Dr Gonzi said education was one of the priorities set by the government at the beginning of its term of office, which was why most of its policies and decisions have revolved around this priority. Education was important for the country’s development and its economy, as it was the only way by which the country’s competitiveness could improve. Never, in recent years, have there been so many projects focused on education, he said.

Dr Galea also visited the Lily of the Valley Secondary School in Mosta to open a new multi-purpose ground with synthetic turf. The project was carried out in collaboration with Mosta local council, the Malta Football Association and the Foundation for Tomorrow’s Schools. The pitch can be used for football, volleyball, netball and basketball.

Dr Galea said the government was committed to continue improving educational institutions in Mosta and mentioned the construction of a new school in the locality with an investment of Lm3 million.