The Ministry of Education will lead a flood assessment exercise in July to determine when three displaced schools in the Zambezi Region can safely return to their permanent premises.

Zambezi Education Director Alex Sikume told NamPa in an interview on Monday the assessment will take place one month after schools reopen for the second term on 01 June 2026.

The findings will guide authorities on whether Nankutwe Combined School, Mpukano Primary School, and Muzii Combined School - all located in the flood-prone Kabbe South Constituency - can move back from their temporary centres.

Nearly 600 learners and staff members were affected when the schools were forced to close due to rising water levels.

Sikume said the schools are currently on a delayed break, having operated through the traditional holiday period to recover lost instructional time.

Following a directive issued over the Easter long weekend, the affected schools bypassed the scheduled 30 April holiday and continued lessons throughout May to ensure the curriculum remained on track.

The relocation was a complex operation executed over the Easter long weekend. School furniture, equipment, and the personal belongings of both staff and learners had to be ferried across the floodplains using a combination of boats, trucks, and buses.

Lessons have since been conducted in makeshift tents.

Under the temporary arrangement, Muzii Combined School is operating out of Lusese, while Mpukano Primary School is stationed at Kabbe, roughly 30 kilometres from the Luhonono docking site. Nankutwe Combined School has been set up adjacent to Schuckmannsburg Combined School, a few metres from the Luhonono docking area.

The director added that depending on availability, these schools will remain a priority for food rations provided by the Regional Disaster Risk Management Committee.