Maputo — The schools affected by Cyclone Freddy in the central Mozambican province of Zambezia will gradually resume classes as from next week, according to Deputy Education Minister Manuel Banzo.

Speaking on Monday in the provincial capital, Quelimane, Banzo said that preliminary figures indicate that more than 760 Zambezia schools were destroyed or damaged by the cyclone, affecting more than 230,000 pupils, and 4,379 teachers.

He said the resumption of classes will be gradual, and will depend on cyclone victims leaving the schools that had been transformed into temporary accommodation centres. By 19 March, there were 120 accommodation centres.

Banzo said work was being done rapidly to ensure that the schools could reopen this month. "Whenever families leave the schools, these should be cleaned and organized for later use by the pupils', he stressed.

Banzo added that the Education Ministry will mobilise financial resources from its partners to rehabilitate the school facilities affected by the cyclone throughout the country.

An exhaustive study was being made of the needs, he continued, noting that "in some districts there are still problems of communication'.