The National Education Trust (NET) is undertaking an initiative in tandem with key stakeholder partners to instal safe drinking water and hydration stations in schools, with a particular focus on institutions affected by the ongoing drought and high temperatures.
During the first two weeks of the 2026/27 academic year, eight institutions across Kingston and St. Andrew were selected to benefit from the initiative at a cost of $28 million.
These are Tarrant High School, Kingston Technical High School, Edith Dalton James High School, Mavis Bank High School, Papine High School, Clan Carty High School, Pembroke Hall High School, and Oberlin High School.
Speaking during the hydration station handover at Tarrant High School on September 16, NET Board Chairman, Professor Andrew Spencer, underscored the initiative’s importance, noting that water is essential to all life and fundamental to human health and development.
Against this backdrop, Professor Spencer said NET and its partners in the initiative, Newport Water Limited, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the Diabetes Association of Jamaica, recognised that it is imperative to ensure that young people are able to fulfil their potential, noting that adequate hydration plays a major role in that process.
“This hydration handover ceremony represents more than just the installation of a hydration station. It speaks to the kind of education system that we collectively seek to build in Jamaica… one that recognises that educational achievements and student well-being are deeply connected.
‘So we’re creating an ecosystem that seeks to ensure that students are learning in environments that are suitable, that are fit for purpose, and that are encouraging and nurturing of their educational journey,” he said.
Professor Spencer encouraged the students to embrace attitudes that demonstrate clean hearts, clean minds and good intentions, noting that such values are important for nation-building and the development of Jamaica.
Meanwhile, Newport Water Limited representative Sheridon Greaves, said the company partnered with the initiative in recognition of its potential to provide students with healthier, chilled drinking water and reduce the consumption of sugary drinks.
He urged the students to choose water as their first drink of choice, pointing out that regular consumption can help lower the risk of diabetes, hypertension and other non-communicable diseases (NCDs).
“You are the future of Jamaica, [so] you should be aiming to be more healthy. We all [probably] have family members who are suffering [from NCDs), so it is important that we take care of our bodies,” Mr. Greaves emphasised.
Newport Water provides eco-friendly, bottleless water purification and filtration systems, as well as water softeners, for residential and commercial customers across the Caribbean, including Barbados, Jamaica, St. Lucia, and Grenada.
The company will also be responsible for maintaining the hydration stations installed under the initiative.
Major Hall expressed appreciation for the initiative, noting that the prolonged drought had placed a strain on the school’s water supply and that the new cool water storage facility would significantly benefit the institution.
“Thank you to the partners for making Tarrant High School one of [your] schools of choice,” he said.
