A total of 105 schools are still closed in districts affected by armed violence in northern Mozambique, and at least 40 have reopened this year due to the “relative security environment”, an official source announced.
Macomia district tops the list with the highest number of closed schools, with 35, followed by Mocímboa da Praia (24), Nangade (8) and Palma (6), said Ivaldo Quincardete, provincial director of Education and Culture in Cabo Delgado province, northern Mozambique, quoted by the media on Tuesday.
“This year we have 40 more schools that have reopened in the districts affected by terrorism, I’m referring to Palma, Mocímboa da Praia, Macomia, Nangade, Muidumbe and Quissanga, each of which has managed to reopen schools that were closed last year,” he said.
With the 40 schools reopened this year, the number of operational educational institutions in Cabo Delgado, a province affected by attacks by armed groups since 2017, has risen from 867 to 907.
The provincial director of education also said free textbooks are being delivered to initial classes in districts affected by armed violence.
Since October 2017, the gas-rich province of Cabo Delgado has been facing an armed rebellion with attacks claimed by movements associated with the extremist group Islamic State.
The last major attack took place on 10 and 11 May on the district headquarters of Macomia, with around a hundred insurgents sacking the town, causing several deaths and heavy fighting with the Mozambican Defence and Security Forces and Rwandan soldiers, who are supporting Mozambique in the fight against the rebels.
Lusa
