For three weeks, the waters of the Congo River have threatened to invade several schools in the territory of Isangi (Tshopo). Students and teachers encounter enormous difficulties in accessing their respective establishments. Roads leading to schools are flooded, and some of them are submerged. To reach their schools, students and teachers use canoes on a daily basis, thus exposing themselves to the risk of capsizing.
A recent incident saw a student fall into the water before being saved by the intervention of witnesses. Among the affected establishments are Yalikina Primary School and Yalikina Institute, where river waters now reach the entrance gates.
On mission to the Isangi territory, Simon Masimango, provincial minister responsible for national education and new citizenship, assessed the situation.
“The observation is bitter: the conditions of access to schools have become extremely difficult. Students and teachers are exposed to multiple risks. I have heard the concerns of educational stakeholders, who are calling for the suspension of teaching. These concerns are legitimate. I will submit a report to the provincial government to rule on this case,” he said.
Teachers, like parents, are impatiently awaiting the decision of the provincial authorities in the face of this critical situation. During his visit, the minister also used a canoe to travel to the village of Yalikina, where he met school authorities, teachers and students from threatened schools. Among them are the Yalikina primary school and the Yalikina 2 institute.
Under these conditions, Joseph Basai, Proved of the Tshopo 2 educational province, asked the minister to get personally involved in improving the study conditions of students, particularly during this period of flooding.
Gabriel Makabu, in Kisangani
Swiss
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