National School Merit Week was officially launched nationwide this Wednesday, February 14, 2024. In Kindia, the Miss Mathematics contest was held at Kindia 4 high school. The Minister of Pre-University Education and Literacy visited the site to greet and encourage the candidates. Further, he took the opportunity to denounce the growing school drop-out rate in the country's mining areas.

After the visit, Guillaume Hawing gave an interview to the press. In his speech, he deplored the situation in the mining areas, saying: "This is a problem that goes back a long way, and solutions are in the making. We've been on missions for 2 years now. The latest one was that of the Secretary General of the Ministry, who went to the field to try to understand the root cause of school drop-out in mining areas, and to raise awareness among pupils in this situation."

According to the Minister of Pre-University Education and Literacy, the Guinean government is moving heaven and earth to curb this scourge. "We have projects in this direction. It's a sad reality, but we're fighting. Today, the situation has greatly diminished since the advent of the CNRD. You hear fewer cases of school drop-out. We're going to keep on working to make a success of Guinean education", concluded Guillaume Hawing, Minister of Pre-University Education and Literacy.

The education system has been deteriorating in many of the country's mining areas. To date, many pupils have dropped out of school in favor of gold and diamond mining.