The nine-year school “Neim Babameto” in the city of Durres is set to become the second largest educational facility being rebuilt in the country, which, as already promised, is slated to open its doors to 1060 students on first anniversary of the earthquake on Nov 26. Prime Minister Edi Rama, accompanied by the Minister of State for Reconstruction Arben Ahmetaj, and the Mayor of Durres Emiriana Sako, inspected the ongoing works to construct the new school building designed to meet contemporary standards for habitability and environmental comfort and provide spaces for contemporary education.
The new educational facility will house 28 classrooms, seven labs, a gym, a library, a teachers’ room and polyvalent halls and is expected to become a model of schools’ transformation in the country. “The facility is expected to be second largest after the secondary school “Sami Frashëri” in Tirana. The school building will be one of the largest in terms of its area and it will meet highest European standards and become a model of transformation,” Reconstruction Minister Ahmetaj said.
Building work has entered an advanced stage and the new school, designed by Italian architect Mario Cuccinella, will be ready to open its doors and welcome students in November.
In the meantime, work is also underway to construct other school buildings funded by other international donors, including the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the European Union (EU). “The work to construct first batch of 22 educational facilities in Durres will start by end of September and then we will make preparations to build the second group of new schools funded by the European Union,” Reconstruction Minister said.
“With the current procedures and our work speed we are heading towards completion, whereas the construction work has yet to start according to the EU procedures. We are actually around six months ahead, suggesting that we have been working intensely and we are doing utmost efforts. We also understand the affected citizens who want to move into their new homes as soon as possible,” PM Rama said.
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Another school set to be built from scratch is the nine-year school “Hasan Koçi” in Durres, which is expected to reopen doors to its schoolchildren in November, a year after the devastating earthquake. PM Rama, along with the Minister of State for Reconstruction, Arben Ahmetaj, and Durres Mayor Emiriana Sako inspected the construction works at the site.
“The work to construction this school should complete on Nov 26. It will house 18 classrooms, eight labs, as well as community spaces,” Durres Mayor said.
The school’s design will provide to provide natural lighting through all corridors of the building. The educational facility covers 4500 square meters, and in addition to classrooms and laboratories it will also feature green spaces and sports grounds, a new standard being implemented in the 32 schools due to be rebuilt in Durres.
