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Oshana closes four schools due to floods…1 948 pupils at home


OSHANA region deputy director of education Hilma Nuunyango-George says the region closed three schools on Friday due to the ongoing flood, bringing the number of closed schools to four.

She said one of schools, Oikango Combined School, was closed down on Monday last week. The other schools are Onakamwani Combined School, Oshipumbu Combined School and Nevonga Junior Primary School.

She added that Omusimboti Combined School is partially closed after classes from pre-primary to Grade 7 were suspended.

“Grade 8 to 11 pupils are still attending classes,” adding that by Friday morning older pupils could still able cross the streams to attend classes.

Nuunyango-George said 83 teachers are at home while 1 948 pupils are not attending school in Oshana region due to flood.

All the pupils are from the above-mentioned schools.

The deputy director said five schools are being monitored and if the water level keeps rising, they might be closed down.

She said the closing of schools has a negative impact on teaching and learning.

“However, the lives of our children and those of our teachers matter. That’s why if the schools are surrounded by water, we are left with no option but to close them,” she said.

She added that some schools have a handful of pupils who are crossing the streams and unable to reach the schools.

In such cases, she said, the pupils have been encouraged to relocate to houses close to their respective schools.

She also urged parents to escort their children to avoid incidents of drowning.

“Let’s not just send them like we usually do. We need to monitor the situation because with flood water, you can pass the road now when it is dry now but after an hour or a day, the stream is full of water,” she said.

Oshana Regional Council’s Jonas Kapenda said 27 houses in Oshana region are affected by the floods, with Ongwediva and Ondangwa Rural constituencies the worst affected.

According to him, 73 people from Oshoopala area at Oshakati have been relocaed, most of them children under-18.





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