When the 2024/2025 National Budget was presented last year, over $7.5 billion was allocated to the education sector, which was the largest share of national spending.
Since then, the political landscape has shifted. Now, all eyes are on the changes the United National Congress administration will bring forward when Finance Minister Davendranath Tancoo presents his first National Budget on Monday, October 13th, 2025.
Last month, during a back-to-school initiative that benefited more than 2,000 students in her Siparia constituency, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar SC stated that “Education is the only passport out of poverty.” It’s not a new statement by the Prime Minister, but it set the tone for one of the UNC’s flagship national policies: the reintroduction of the laptop programme.
“That is why we have reintroduced the distribution of laptops to every Form One student in this new school year. They say books open the mind but technology opens the world. That is why the laptops are so important and if we had carried through with that programme, when in COVID the schools were shut down, the students would still have the laptops to enable them to continue to learn and educate themselves.”
In May 2025, Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar announced that the government had approved the procurement of some 18,000 laptops for students who wrote the 2025 Secondary Entrance Assessment (SEA) examination.
During the Mid-Year budget review in June 2025, The Education Ministry made a case for increased funds to the tune of $455,106,000. The additional funds boosted the $7.512 billion granted to the sector in the 2025 budget.
The reintroduction of the laptop programme marked one of the key promises fulfilled by the UNC administration. Now, as Finance Minister Davendranath Tancoo prepares to present the 2025/2026 National Budget, the education sector is once again expected to take centre stage.
The laptop initiative is part of a wider education reform agenda outlined in the UNC’s 2025 manifesto, now serving as its policy implementation guide.
In the lead-up to the April 28th General Election, Mrs. Persad-Bissessar stressed that the education sector will be prioritised.
“We will open that GATE wide. Always remember in 2010, we open the GATE wide. Yes, and we will do it again. They’ve shut that gate so the young people of our country have no place to go and no hope and no future. I’ve always told you that education is the passport out of poverty. Education is the key to a better quality of life. And therefore, we have given the education sector a priority. A priority in all of the governance because that’s the only way the children are our future. We will open back that gate. We’ll bring back the laptop programme. How could somebody be so small minded?”
But beyond technology, the government also mentions in its manifesto that it intends to tackle education reform from the ground up.
The Ministry of Education, which serves close to 300,000 students and employs over 12,000 educators, is being guided by what the government calls “The Vision of the Child.” It is a holistic approach to developing well-rounded, confident, and emotionally balanced learners.
A major part of that vision includes the universal screening and treatment of children between the ages of four and six. The goal is to assess and address early developmental, physical, and emotional challenges, with the Student Support Services Division restructured to lead the initiative in partnership with specialist consultants.
The UNC manifesto also states that a computerised development tracking system will be introduced to follow students’ academic and social growth throughout their schooling.
Recognising that learning begins at home, the government has plans to strengthen the role of parents and guardians through standardised parental training programmes.
Further initiatives include establishing a technical university, expanding technical-vocational education, and refurbishing schools across the country. There’s also a legislative dimension, with plans to update the Education Act.