Rains, floods destroy nearly 70 schools, madrassas in Uruzgan province

Recent rains and floods have destroyed nearly 70 schools and madrassas in Uruzgan province of Afghanistan, and lack of sufficient funds is hampering their repair work, according to TOLOnews. Shamsullah Kamran, the head of Education in Uruzgan said that the Uruzgan Education Department lacks sufficient funds to rebuild these schools. He said, “As a result of the rains and floods, approximately seventy schools have been completely or partially destroyed. If these schools do not receive attention from organizations, we will face significant problems.” Several teachers and students in the province claim that the educational process has slowed down as a result. They say most of the students from the schools that were damaged are now studying in open areas or private residences. According to teacher Sirajuddin Sirajmal, “The students are in a situation where they have no place for learning,” TOLOnews reported. Lamenting the situation, Javed, a student said, “We sit under the sun; we have nothing, and the teachers do not come, forcing us to go back home.” “We ask the government to rebuild our schools so that we can continue our studies,” another student said. Uruzgan locals have also expressed concerns over the loss of educational facilities, as per TOLOnews. The locals claim that this will have a detrimental impact on their children’s academic development. They demand that the interim government authorities and relief agencies immediately rebuild the damaged schools. (