By After the severe outbreak of cholera in the South African State, Zambia has decided to postpone the new school year resumption due to fear of what might be the results after the students have mixed up with each other.
In a joint statement from the Ministries of Health and Education, they explained that the school calendar is delayed indefinitely until further notice. The statement further explains that they cannot risk having more numbers of people acquiring the disease as the health measures are just being undertaken.
‘It is because of this disease that we had to postpone the school year resumption until further notice,’ read part of the statement issued by both ministries.
Cholera outbreak in Zambia began in October last year. According to the sources, the disease especially appears mostly in the country’s capital, Lusaka, where 47 people have died because of the disease so far.
‘The decision for the postponement of the classes comes in at all levels of education. We bid to avoid the presence of large groups of people in the same place because there are children who come from the epicenters of the epidemic and would mix with those from other areas,’ the ministries explained further.
They also announced that the measures will be revised at the end of this month.
The number of the infected in the whole country exceeds 2,040. We so have created a solid multi-sector device in which several sectors participate, specifies the communication.
Just of recent, the President of Zambia, Edgar Lungu, asked the country’s military to also engage into moves that might help to get the disease defeated. With the President’s direction, the military is helping to clean up different places around Lusaka, the capital, where the disease has killed tens so far.
‘The president is deeply concerned at the rampaging advance of the epidemic and has therefore called on the defense forces to join other stakeholders and thoroughly clean up Lusaka. The outbreak was initially confined in densely populated parts of Lusaka where poor sanitation can aid its transmission, but the disease had now spread to low-density areas,’ read the President’s report, calling upon the military.
The opposition on the other hand, sought the President to announce a state of emergency in the country, to help people settle, devise and apply the best means possible to help defeat the disease.
Reporter: Shamilah Namuddu