Mayotte schools to reopen, more than a month after devastating cyclone
Five weeks after Mayotte was devastated by a cyclone, teachers and staff have headed back to school to prepare for the return of students next week. This comes as lawmakers in mainland France started debate on a bill that would accelerate reconstruction efforts in the Indian Ocean territory, but would not address the root problem of immigration.
Teachers and administrative staff went back to school in Mayotte on Monday, a week later than anticipated, because of the threat from cyclone Dikeledi that swept through last week.
The school district on the archipelago employs just over 10,000 people, including more than 8,000 teachers, who are preparing to welcome back some 117,000 students.
Many – staff and students alike – are still without shelter, water or electricity, over a month after Chido swept through.
Some school buildings served as temporary shelters in the first week after the storm.
Many suffered damage, like the Nord high school in Acoua, whose roof blew off, and walls were reduced to rubble.
“Many classrooms are unusable,” school librarian Véronique Hummel told RFI. “Electricity only came back a month after the cyclone, and water only came back on the morning of Tuesday 14 January.”
She wonders how teaching will be in these conditions. There is also the question of how many teachers will actually be present.
Read more on RFI English
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