With only days to go before schools reopen across the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), teachers and parents in Ebola-hit eastern provinces are voicing concerns over whether classrooms are ready to receive students safely.
Under the official school calendar, classes are due to resume nationwide on September 1. But in areas hit by the Ebola outbreak, which has caused 5,713 confirmed cases and 2,744 deaths, the reopening is expected to vary according to local transmission risks. The DRC Ministry of National Education has introduced a three-tier system—green, orange and red—based on the intensity of Ebola transmission. Some 2,890 schools are considered at high risk, according to authorities.
